Critics Average score from professional wine critics and publications.
92
/100
Reviews
16
professional
Vintages
1
2005
Other
92/100
Red Bordeaux Blend
NV
Community Reviews
2525
Reviews
91.6
Avg Score
98
Highest
Taster #8375
· Oct 1, 2024
93/100
At our "Welcome, Asheville Refugees" dinner event in North Georgia after the Helene floods, and (worth noting for aging considerations) served from a Magnum. Pretty much ready to go on PnP, but blossomed even more over consumption time (with Flannery beef). Aromatics are terrific, with rich raspberry, black raspberry, blackberry fruits, sexy oak spices overlay, black walnut hulls, violets, chocolate, charcoal. Very lithe body but packing a load of flavor and concentration. This was a pleasing meld of prettiness, power, …
2005 vintage
Taster #6352
· Mar 17, 2022
My first taste of this since 2013. It's still a bit of a dense beast, but a nice drink. Cassis, plum and some of the strongest licorice notes I've encountered in any wine. While it insulted Marybeth's sense of subtlety, it's a great wine in this generous genre.
2005 vintage
Taster #5317
· Feb 3, 2022
91/100
Bright, raspberry, lifted aromatics move to a surprisingly light palate with loads of very bright cherry, hints of tobacco, and light minerality on a suave and fully resolved finish. This wine was such a massive blockbuster its youth, that I am quite surprised at how much weight it has shed and how resolved it is at age 17. I would now describe it as "pretty" but maybe a little disappointing given the intensity and concentration of its youth.
2005 vintage
Taster #0433
· Jan 1, 2022
Drinking great. Nice mellow nose showing meat blood cassis and blackberry. Very polished on the palate, extremely well balanced, expands beautifully with real lingering power. At its peak but no rush at all. Excellent.
2005 vintage
Taster #0332
· Jul 31, 2020
92/100
Nose of spice, black cherry, chocolate, dusty earth, and blueberry, on the palate, big body, mouth fillimg fruit, lovely, but not my style, mefium/long finish. Photo uploaded.
2005 vintage
Taster #8227
· May 31, 2020
Nose on the pop and pour had me excited. Nicely complex, with dark fruit, hints of spice, liquorish, and a constant evolution of notes every time I smell it. Palate is rich, dark, hints of spice, chocolate and interesting enough to make you want more. Long finish that leaves you wanting more. Would buy again.
2005 vintage
Taster #2963
· May 10, 2020
94/100
Delicious wine. Had on Mother’s Day with Ina Garten’s pastitsio recipe. Fantastic pairing
2005 vintage
Taster #6545
· Mar 4, 2019
91/100
Aromas had me really excited, but it turned out to fade quickly. The original red raspberry/blueberry disappeared and the hint of graphite was just a wisp. Eventually it was good but failed to be great.
2005 vintage
Taster #4443
· Aug 5, 2016
88/100
A Few Wines with BBQ (Bannockburn, IL) : Popped and poured. Fat black fruit aromas with some new oak still not fully absorbed. Nicely enjoyable flavors with lots of ripe fruit and sweet spice, a hint more restraint.
2005 vintage
Taster #2762
· May 17, 2015
Wow! Popped and poured and I thought it was gone. Slight bricking with little flavor. I then read the CT notes and let it sit open for a few hours before trying again at dinner. This turned into a completely different wine that was intense with flavor. Even the color got better with time. Amazing.
2005 vintage
Taster #0935
· Mar 1, 2015
89/100
Pine needle and candied red fruit. Red currants and warm spices. Soft through the finish. A little too "sweet" for my liking.
2005 vintage
Taster #3706
· Dec 6, 2014
Very tasty. The winery's Sept 2014 drinkability chart listed this wine as time to 'drink' so I had two bottles from the cellar on consecutive nights. Once with cheese and once with steak. Everything I love about Betz.
2005 vintage
Taster #2702
· Aug 2, 2014
92/100
This was delicious but still drinking very youthful. Decanting for 2 hours revealed not only luscious notes of rich black fruit ( blackberry, currant) but nice secondary flavors of sandal wood, baking spices and pipe tobacco. Will revisit in a couple of years.
2005 vintage
Taster #6545
· Feb 27, 2014
87/100
Bottle was slightly off, not over the hill but lacked fruit withoutsecondary emphasis.
2005 vintage
Taster #6352
· Nov 1, 2013
Nice; way too young
2005 vintage
Taster #6703
· Oct 6, 2012
93/100
Had the 2005 Betz "regular" Cabernet-dominated blend (Père de Famille) several months ago and I thought it was ready-to-drink at that time. This one, however, seems to have a long life ahead of it. This wine needs air now and time later to smooth out sufficiently, but what potential it has. It still has substantial structure, and it will take a while for it to settle. Currently though, it has bright fruits, mostly of the red variety. It seems the …
2005 vintage
Taster #6001
· Jun 11, 2012
My principal comment on this wine runs in line with the rest of the notes here - this wine has massive silky weight to it. It is almost as if this is a concentrate, but without the over-concentrated fruit. ABV is listed at 14.5%, but it seems a bit higher when consumed with food. I say this needs to sit at least another 3 years, probably more. It develops well in the glass, and has a lot of stuffing.
2005 vintage
Taster #1557
· May 5, 2012
92/100
Popped and poured and followed over about 2 hours. Tasting notes seem to be all over the place for this wine but I felt it was outstanding. Not a powerful nose at all but a velvety feel on the palate with some very definite sweet fruits to it. Maybe even more red than black fruits on the palate (probably the Merlot). I felt like it was quite drinkable immediately but improved pretty dramatically over 2 hours. Good stuff.
2005 vintage
Taster #1004
· Oct 18, 2011
92/100
Needs to be decanted a good three to four hours. I opened and decanted this after lunch and periodically checked up on it before dinner. Quite reserved initially. On both the nose and palate there was not much fruit in evidence. By dinnertime, this had changed dramatically. Not opulent by any means, but a powerful core of deep dark fruit had emerged. On the nose, this combined with notes of tobacco leaf, eucalyptus and menthol. The tannins were quite hard …
2005 vintage
Taster #7166
· Oct 13, 2011
88/100
Three bottles tasted with consistent notes. Intense black cherry fruit, fresh herbs, pepper, vanilla, and milk chocolate/cocoa. Prominent oak tannins that turn the finish a touch astringent and flat. Large-scaled and sweet. Noticeable alcohol. Improved with air; this may be in a bit of an awkward evolutionary phase at the moment.
2005 vintage
Taster #0589
· Sep 29, 2011
Still young. needed time to open up, but after an hour it came alive and was wonderful. This will be at its prime in about 3-4 years.
2005 vintage
Taster #7948
· Sep 17, 2011
98/100
This was one of the most unforgettable wine drinking experiences I have ever had. Certainly a candidate for my Wne of the Year. I was lucky enough to get 6 bottles of this but have still been hording them. This was my first bottle consumed and I am so glad I waited as long as I did. This will only get better, a minimum of 5 years evolution left. I followed the progress for what was ultimately a 6 hour …
2005 vintage
Taster #6988
· Jul 24, 2011
97/100
Tanzer 2005 WA Cabernets and Blends (Palace Ballroom, Seattle, WA) : Tanzer 2005 WA CABs - flight 1/4 with 05 Chester-Kidder and Cadence Bel Canto. This was drinking wonderfully well. Third time I've had this wine, but it has been a couple of years. Tbe room's wine of the flight and my WOTN. Informally it was WOTN overall as it kept getting mentioned and was the first to go empty after the tasting. Had the sweetest, ripest tanniins I've probably …
2005 vintage
Taster #2358
· Oct 17, 2010
Wait a couple years for the rest...
2005 vintage
Taster #7041
· Feb 21, 2010
88/100
Deep, dark purple. Nose a bit youthful and reticent, but the Cab Franc provides a nice tobacco and spice component. Palate with plum, blackberry, black currant and some graphite. Better than the Oreno next to it, but not strutting its stuff yet.
2005 vintage