Lastbottle has 3 bottles 2019 Screaming Eagle for $9699

Objective Aggie said:

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Scarecrow on lastbottle!
2017 3 bottles for $2049

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Shockingly, that is a good deal.

QBCade said:

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Objective Aggie said:

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Scarecrow on lastbottle!
2017 3 bottles for $2049

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Shockingly, that is a good deal.

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You're right it is a "good deal" relative to their secondary market, but the 2017 vintage is definitely the least desirable year in the otherwise superb run of 2012-2019.

FTAco07 said:

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QBCade said:

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Objective Aggie said:

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Scarecrow on lastbottle!
2017 3 bottles for $2049

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Shockingly, that is a good deal.

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You're right it is a "good deal" relative to their secondary market, but the 2017 vintage is definitely the least desirable year in the otherwise superb run of 2012-2019.

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Agree. I would pass. If you're going to drop that kinda coin, go all the way for the best years.

QBCade said:

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Objective Aggie said:

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Scarecrow on lastbottle!
2017 3 bottles for $2049

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Shockingly, that is a good deal.

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it actually isn't a good wine deal. average vintage to buy such a premium brand... of course if you usually buy DRC for 4,900 a pop, might look like a steal... all about perspective!

bularry said:

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QBCade said:

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Objective Aggie said:

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Scarecrow on lastbottle!
2017 3 bottles for $2049

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Shockingly, that is a good deal.

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it actually isn't a good wine deal. average vintage to buy such a premium brand... of course if you usually buy DRC for 4,900 a pop, might look like a steal... all about perspective!

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Actually, after looking you're more correct. Saw a 3 bottle lot of the 2017 go for $1500. Peak pricing on their wines (last 20yrs) is 2013 and 2007.

A couple new acquisitions I'm trying. Raymond over Del Dotto

Del Dotto is a fun place to visit. Back when I could throw wine down like I was Betty Ford, I'd always stop there and revisit barrel after barrel after barrel. I definitely prefer other wines to those but the tastings were fun. And it was cool to see the same juice aged in different barrels.

Those "barrels" were refilled regularly. Fun, and but not really a barrel tasting.

Yeah. We figured it wasn't a controlled scientific tasting but trusted they used similar barrels to show off the difference in flavor profiles of different oaks and toasts.

Saturday afternoon by the outdoor fireplace lineup

2022 Tavel - Chateau d'Aqueria
2016 Talbott Chardonnay

Saturday Lineup

First time ever having a Tavel really interesting. Not sure what I paid, to be honest. Feels like it's 25-40 bucks?

Not a ton on the nose smells of strawberry, cotton candy and sugar to me.

The color is see through but very red at the same time.

The palate has a bit of a watery type feel to it. It feels like it has a good bit of acidity and maybe bit of tannin too, but feels balanced with the silky water mouth feel.

Very delicious. I think I'd rather drink a Bandol ros if I was going to go for something specific, but this was a great experience.

The Talbott I bought because of the VinePair podcast. I think they had the wine maker on at one point and I bought this 2016 Chardonnay. I think I paid 30?

On the nose lemon sorbet, vanilla, gasoline (my SO thought so, but we are also next to a gas fireplace). Not super aromatic, but smells fresh.

The color is a bright straw/golden yellow.

The palate has a lot of citrus and fruit up front, but vanilla and butter at the back.

The mouth feel is definitely thicker than the Tavel, but not as silky.

Overall, very enjoyable. I think I would drink the Tavel over the Talbott, but that's because I'm not a huge fan of oak on my Chardonnay. Great wines on a Saturday afternoon by the fireplace outside.

BSD said:

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Yeah. We figured it wasn't a controlled scientific tasting but trusted they used similar barrels to show off the difference in flavor profiles of different oaks and toasts.

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Yes this is a very fun and eye opening thing to do! Did a similar multi barrel tasting with Chardonnay a year or so back.

Longer update.

Mid-November my wife and I went on a week long trip to Carmel and Santa Barbara. In Santa Barbara we stayed in Solvang. Cool little area. For those of y'all familiar with the panhandle, it felt at that time of year like plopping wine country on top of Amarillo and adding some hills. Super dry and dusty as the rainy season had not started in full yet at that time. I'm sure it's way nicer now that the rain has arrived.

I had asked for some recs a while back on here and greatly appreciate everyone's responses. Most of what we did wine wise was in Olivos itself. I wish I had found a place outside of in town tasting rooms to go visit but we were pretty indecisive and I wasn't familiar at all with the area!

As for in town, a ton of winery tasting rooms in Los Olivos.
Liquid Farm - insane $5 glass of rose deal. Very good rose of Mourvdre if I recall correctly. Bought a bottle to bring home but I did a double take when I saw that price in the tasting room.

Story of Soil - great Pinots and Syrahs. Had a great Riesling too that we also brought home.

Storm - probably my favorite overall of the trip due to the combo of tasting room, quality, variety, and price. South African winemaker with a nice variety of wines and great across the board. A super geeky carbonic Cabernet franc that I loved in there too. They offered a red flight and a mixed flight so it was fun to get one of each and share it all.

So many other tasting rooms down there that offer wine by the glass. Was a fun town to walk, albeit small as heck! The number of tasting rooms/sqf is crazy in that downtown area.

Great food in the area too. Bar Le Cote was probably my favorite. They had a really good sparkling wine bottle deal for happy hour so we did an early dinner there one night. The fries were so ****ing good we went back in a couple days later for a drink and some fries again. Food was amazing.

Bob's Well Bread was another one I would recommend if you're in the area.

We enjoyed the trip a lot but in terms of wine and food tourism overall we prefer Sonoma county to Santa Barbara. I'm sure we will be back sometime though and maybe that will change. I feel like we just got a taste of it and there is more to offer. We could also be biased just due to familiarity with Sonoma!

Okay now for some wine pictures.

Here is the bottle of champagne we got at Bar Le Cote. Fun Blanc de noir.



Here is what we opened tonight after a fun, but long, day trip today for our family.



Oh and I forgot to add, Brewer-Clifton in Los Olivos is another place I would stop. Stellar wines, and my wife's favorite wines of the trip (Ch, PN, and 1 SY). We didn't do a formal tasting per se but stopped in to talk a bit and taste some while we waited for our dinner reservation nextdoor at Bar Le Cote.

The Mascot was one of my better wine experiences. Dining in Sausalito watching SF skyline with an air show we don't know about. I seem to recall there being nominal markup at the restaurant.

What are odds of getting adding to the allocation list? I just submitted. What do the wines sell for?

Objective Aggie said:

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The Mascot was one of my better wine experiences. Dining in Sausalito watching SF skyline with an air show we don't know about. I seem to recall there being nominal markup at the restaurant.

What are odds of getting adding to the allocation list? I just submitted. What do the wines sell for?

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This is only my 2nd year purchasing on allocation from them. I was added to the list at 6 bottles the same year I requested, so I dont think you will have to wait. I think I paid $135/bottle + shipping this year? The allocation is offered in June and they ship Nov/Dec.

Mascot is a great wine and I don't think there's much of a wait, if any. Mine is set to arrive tomorrow.

That's a great report. As someone who just returned from Sonoma, I gotta say I think I'm more a Santa Barbara County wine/food tourist fan, but both have their selling points.

The Mascot just offered me $180 a bottle for 2017. Is that a good deal?

I remember that he just celebrated 100, what a life.

Objective Aggie said:

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The Mascot just offered me $180 a bottle for 2017. Is that a good deal?

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That is the retail price.

ATL Aggie said:

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Objective Aggie said:

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The Mascot just offered me $180 a bottle for 2017. Is that a good deal?

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That is the retail price.

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But you can't get 2017 at retail any more can you?

Objective Aggie said:

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ATL Aggie said:

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Objective Aggie said:

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The Mascot just offered me $180 a bottle for 2017. Is that a good deal?

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That is the retail price.

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But you can't get 2017 at retail any more can you?

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Not sure about Mascot, but a lot of Napa 2017s can be had at a substantial discount because it was a bad vintage.

Objective Aggie said:

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ATL Aggie said:

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Objective Aggie said:

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The Mascot just offered me $180 a bottle for 2017. Is that a good deal?

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That is the retail price.

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But you can't get 2017 at retail any more can you?

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I bet you can find it online (try winesearcher.com). But, if willing to pay retail I would look for 2016 or 2018. I havent tasted the 2017, and I am sure it is a fantastic wine, but for the same price you can get 2016 or 2018 which are considered better vintages.

ATL Aggie said:

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Objective Aggie said:

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ATL Aggie said:

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Objective Aggie said:

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The Mascot just offered me $180 a bottle for 2017. Is that a good deal?

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That is the retail price.

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But you can't get 2017 at retail any more can you?

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I bet you can find it online (try winesearcher.com). But, if willing to pay retail I would look for 2016 or 2018. I havent tasted the 2017, and I am sure it is a fantastic wine, but for the same price you can get 2016 or 2018 which are considered better vintages.

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https://www.benchmarkwine.com/search?q=mascot&sort_by=name-asc&view=producer

2017 Mascot is $119 on Benchmark

BSD said:

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WestUAg said:

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Yesterday was pott single vineyard release. They added a Pinot, brought back a Grenache and added a port type wine to their single vineyard release

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Yep. Single vineyards of Her Majesty (probably my favorite), Turf War (won't make it to next tier) and a new one off Howell Mountain (cab sauv and franc). They also brought back a Grenache and a carignan and while the names of both of those are the same as the previous Grenache and carignan wines, I'm not sure about the vineyards sources remain the same. They very well may be. I looked at my inventory on the carignan and the only one produced is the 2008. The Pinot was released last year as well. Since it was a 2020, I'll probably drink it soon and then cellar this 2021 (I say that I'll drink it early…did Anderson Valley get smoked?). The 2013 port was a project they did a while back but only sold a few bottles at the time. We have the 2012 and 2013 already so I passed on adding more.

BigAg, did you get an email today? Looks like next wave opens up soon.

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How are the other Cabs they put out? I've had Turf war and The Arsenal. Both were good. Picked up a couple of Western Stars and a Space & Time. Haven't tried them yet. Have u had?

All of his wines that I've had are great. You can't go wrong. I still haven't tasted the Space and Time yet. They are resting for a little while longer.

ATL Aggie said:

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Objective Aggie said:

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ATL Aggie said:

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Objective Aggie said:

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The Mascot just offered me $180 a bottle for 2017. Is that a good deal?

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That is the retail price.

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But you can't get 2017 at retail any more can you?

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I bet you can find it online (try winesearcher.com). But, if willing to pay retail I would look for 2016 or 2018. I havent tasted the 2017, and I am sure it is a fantastic wine, but for the same price you can get 2016 or 2018 which are considered better vintages.

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Thank you everyone for the counsel. This is quality Texags intel that I appreciate.

Honestly, one of the only Chards I enjoy...

I'm going to pollute this thread and proclaim the 2021 Hess Family Select Pinot Noir from Central Coast is an absolutly incredible wine for $13. One of the best values I've found in many years. Highly recommend if you just want a daily Pinot and not looking to open the really good stuff.