Vérité - La Muse - Sonoma Valley 2005

Jamessuckling.com

98 / 100

par James Suckling le 14/02/2018

This is a soulful merlot with aromas and flavors of meat, currants and berries. Full-bodied, round and juicy with chewy tannins and a flavorful finish. Lemon-rind undertones, too. Drink now.

Vinous

94 / 100

le 01/05/2016

Bright, moderately saturated medium ruby. Soil-driven aromas of licorice, cracked pepper, bitter chocolate, espresso and crushed rock are lifted by lavender and violet high notes. Juicy, spicy, penetrating flavors of red and purple fruits, flowers and minerals. Not a fat or particularly fleshy style but boasts lovely clarity and energy and a milk-chocolatey ripeness. This impeccably balanced, soil-driven wine finishes firmly tannic and long but not at all dry.S. Tanzer

Wine Advocate

98 / 100

par Robert Parker le 29/06/2015

The myth perpetrated by Old World wine proponents is that California wines don’t age. Those critics need to taste Verité, because these wines are aging far slower than I imagined. The 2005 La Muse, a blend of 88% Merlot, 10% Cabernet Franc and the rest Malbec, tips the scales at 14.5% alcohol and spent 18 months in 100% new French oak. Incredibly youthful, this wine has an opaque purple color and a beautiful nose of espresso roast, white chocolate, blackberry and cassis, with mocha and a touch of oak. The wine is full-bodied, with magnificent structure, texture and density. I could drink it now. That said, most consumers should give this wine another 3-4 years, and drink it over the following 30+ years.

Wine Advocate

98 / 100

par Robert Parker le 02/05/2011

The 2005 exhibits a Bordeaux-like personality. Thick, viscous and rich with great elegance, tremendous purity and intensity as well as a full-bodied sweetness, it offers notes of caramel, mocha, coffee roast, black cherries and black currants. This supple, velvety-textured, opulent 2005 is accessible now and capable of lasting another 20-25 years.

Vinous

94 / 100

le 01/05/2008

Bright ruby-red. Perfumed aromas of cherry, coffee, red licorice and minerals. Suave and vibrant, with lovely lift and musky complexity to the juicy red fruit and mineral flavors. Powerful and deep but with superb elegance. Finishes youthfully tight and very long. A baby today. These 2005s were bottled in November of 2007. Note 94+/100S. Tanzer

Wine Advocate

89-91 / 100

par Robert Parker le 28/12/2007

The 2005 La Muse was completely closed when I tasted it. Dark ruby/purple, this elegant blend of 86.5% Merlot, 11.5% Cabernet Franc, and 2.4% Malbec has some notes of black fruits, dusty earthiness, and subtle new oak. It seems lighter than previous vintages, and also more austere, but I wonder if the wine was just going through a pre-bottling stage of hardness and a closed personality. This wine will make old bones, but it is austere at present. I look forward to tasting it in twelve months.

Vinous

94-97 / 100

le 01/05/2007

Deep red-ruby. Vinous aromas of black cherry, licorice and minerals, lifted by pungent medicinal high tones. Silky on entry, then impressively dense in the middle, with a deeply mineral character to the pure flavors of black fruits, violet, bitter chocolate and spice. Tannins are substantial but fine, and the wine's structure and freshness promise a long and slow evolution in bottle.S. Tanzer