But not on a root day.
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thatās not where I was coming from. I see the term often used by people who decant the wine several hours, pouring it back and still calling it ādouble decantedā
This tasting sounds like a blast! Iāve attended three verticals of MacD and itās always fun to see how faves of the vertical tasting change from one occasion to the next.
I agree that the 2010 is an absolute stunner and it was my personal #1 of the lineup at the vertical I attended in Napa earlier this year. I find that 2010s in general in Napa are in āthe zoneā and this one at age twelve is right where I like em. I think it can go another decade but I adore the balance of fruit structure and finesse of this one now.
Also agree the 2013 has it all. I teased Graeme on WB many years ago asking him āSo, how does it feel to have made the best wine youāll ever make in just your 4th vintage?ā 
That being said I think their 2018 might actually surpass it with time. And maybe the 2021 too.
The only surprising result from your tasting is the 2014. Iāve had the 2014 at least ten times and usually find it among the most, not least structured wines in their lineup. I wanna try one of my 14s over the holidays and see what it is like. This is the only note in the lineup that surprises me.
I think for Napa in general the 2014 vintage is much like the 2006 vintage. It was considered āgood but not greatā during harvest but then it just gained and gained after about year seven. Right now I think Napa 2014 generally tastes better for most high-end Cabs than 2012, 2015, 2016, 2017. As for MacDonaldās 2014, it was also one of the plushest wines at our vertical but still had a lot of structure.
It might be fun for some Berserkers to open a Mac 2014 for the holidays, using the decant time Todd mentions, and then enjoy it over a long dinner. A thread on this subject on WB would be a lot of fun to compare notes. After all, you have to start drinking these sometime!
Just my thoughts. I am now very curious to try a 14 soon. Very jealous of your event!
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Todd you are correct about 11s. Here in Napa the consensus is almost universal that 2011 is now a better vintage than 2012, which is in many cases was quite not as good as we thought early-on. This would have seemed impossible eight or nine years ago.
One could do worse as a collector than scooping up excellent Napa producers from 2011 when they show up for sale. They can be drunk now or over the next 5 years+ and cost a fraction of what top vintages cost. They are steals and ready to drink. Double-win.
PS- and most have real alcohols in the 13.6-14.6% range.
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I plan on opening a 14 Mac for Christmas after seeing the notes here and talking to Alex about it!
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Me too. Too good a topic not to delve into.
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That just slipped outāyou donāt really mean it, do you? 
Great start to this write-up, ToddāIām struck in your notes by the individuality the wines showed, which is great to see. Look forward to more details, with thanks to everyone so far for notes and pictures.
Love reading these kinds of notes. Thanks for posting Roy.
Would love to know exactly what non-MacDonald wines were present. I took no notes and my recollection is a bit hazy (couldnāt possibly have anything to do with the number of wines on the table). One of pre-MacDonald standouts for me was the '90 Grange. From a bottle partially consumed the night before, it was fantastic.
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What an amazing event. Must have been incredible to be able to try these all at once, and also enjoy the company of people who are equally as passionate about the bottles in front of them. I can only imagine the setting and folks who attended put this over the top!
Iāve only a handful of bottles (later vintages), and the notes here definitely indicate hold. Until then, going to keep my fingers crossed for a Midwest event. 
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Really happy how well this turned out. When I initially posted the thread to start this event, I was worried nobody would sign up! Couldnāt have been more wrong and much thanks to Taylor for helping with the restaurant and Todd for promoting it, dealing with the funds and for reaching out to Alex and Graeme to come. It was a team effort and I couldnāt have done it without those two. Thank you.
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looks like an amazing tasting. I have loved all the vertical tastings we have done. I always learn so much through them. Would have been a great event to be part of.
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I feel fortunate to join the LA crew and other fellow out-of-towners to have been part of this event. The '10 and '11 were my favorites, displaying different characteristics that are well documented by others above. My thought is that the former hit all cylinders with the ribeye while the latter was beautiful with the filet.
While the '14 may have been the least interesting of the bunch, it was balanced with just the right amount of fruit and acid that warrants many more years in the cellar.
For Scott, a '77 Grahams was one of the others passed around late.
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Sorry, '77 Taylor, not Grahams
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Here are some of the bottles that were floating around:
1989 La Conseillante
1990 Grange
1999 Fonsalette
1997 Insignia
2008 Lilbert
NV Egly Ouriet
1994 Mondavi Reserve
1977 Taylorās
2009 Suduiraut
2001 Rieussec
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I was thinking the same- 2014 MacD at the Holiday table. Will post.
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Over/under on the number of ā14 MacDonald corks pulled between Christmas and New Years Day now sits at 15.5, 14.5 if mine is not counted
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plus one!
Such a great event, but the only (slight) negative was the space they had us in. I still donāt know why restaurants use those pull curtains that only cover up half the āprivateā space. FFS, at least have the curtain expand all the way over. It does next to nothing to cancel out noise from the main area. At times I felt like we were dining and drinking directly under the LAX flight pathā¦
Rant over, still would do it again tonight if possibleā¦
Ah, yes. That was my first vintage port with proper age on it. It, along with the '01 Rieussec, was a great way to cap off the evening!
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