Ratings By Robert Parker 90 Tasting Notes Made in the tell-tale Kirwan style (medium to full-bodied, lots of muscle, concentration, and thickness), the dense purple-colored 2008 offers sweet blackberry and cassis fruit along with a layered mouthfeel. A sleeper of the vintage, this 2008 remains backward and thus will benefit from 2-3 years of cellaring.… Read More »

Ratings By Robert Parker 87+ Tasting Notes This big, robust, exuberant offering is excessively extracted with relatively hard, astringent tannins. Nevertheless, there is lots of flavor, and the wine is full, rich, and built for longer term cellaring than most 2007s. It requires 3-4 years for everything to come into balance … hopefully.(Wine Advocate #188… Read More »

Ratings By Robert Parker 88 Tasting Notes This wine seemed more impressive from cask than it is from bottle, as the oak seems to overwhelm much of its personality, and the wine??s austere, astringent tannins are cause for concern. It is concentrated and dark ruby purple, but the oak and tannin excesses seem to suggest… Read More »

Ratings By Robert Parker 92+ Tasting Notes I remember tasting a number of Kirwans from the 19th century that had held up surprisingly well for over 100 years. While the 2005 will probably not last that long, it may be one of the finest wines this estate has made in the last fifty years. This… Read More »

Ratings By Robert Parker 90 Tasting Notes Aromas of cedar, spice box, incense, burning embers, black currants, and new wood jump from the glass of this full-bodied, structured effort. Behaving more like a Pauillac than a Margaux, it is a long, concentrated, powerful wine meant for long aging. Anticipated maturity: 2012-2025.(Wine Advocate #171 Jun 2007)… Read More »

Ratings By Robert Parker 93 Tasting Notes This estate has been producing impressive wines since the mid-1990s, and much of the credit goes to the talented proprietress, Sophie Schyler. The 2003 Kirwan is a beauty and gets my vote as the finest Kirwan made in the last quarter century. A beautiful bouquet of forest floor,… Read More »

Ratings By Robert Parker 88 Tasting Notes A relatively masculine-styled effort, with some noticeably hard and elevated tannin, this deep ruby/purple-colored 2002 exhibits notes of forest floor, black currant, vanilla, and incense. Firmly structured, tannic, and muscular, it requires 3-4 years of cellaring, and should keep for up to two decades.(Wine Advocate #158 Apr 2005)… Read More »

Ratings By Robert Parker 90 Tasting Notes The 2001 Kirwan is nearly as good as their splendid 2000. A dense purple color is accompanied by a bouquet of barbecue smoke, graphite, black cherries, creme de cassis, and a hint of espresso. Full-bodied and layered, with outstanding richness, purity, and sweetness on the palate, this firmly… Read More »

Ratings By Robert Parker 90 Tasting Notes Still somewhat tannic but very much in the style that Kirwan has favored over recent vintages, this is a full-bodied, muscular, powerhouse effort. The wine still has a dense ruby/purple color, with loads of blackberries, cassis, and some noticeable new oak still lingering in the background. Powerful, rich,… Read More »

Ratings By Robert Parker 89 Tasting Notes The aromatic, oaky, modern-styled 1999 Kirwan boasts a deep ruby/purple color as well as considerable size, depth, and muscle (atypical for the vintage), abundant texture, and loads of flavor (primarily licorice, cassis, and earth). Anticipated maturity: 2004-2015.(Wine Advocate #140 Apr 2002) By Robert Parker