Wine tasting of September 5, 2008

Hot weather has made a come back and we cannot have wines safely shipped this week. In any case we tasted 4 good wines. All from North America but two are classic new world and two are old world-style new world wines. Very interesting combination and the tasters expressed different opinions to the latter group of wines. Present are Uncle-N, Piroca, Winepath, and Jimmy.

1. Trefethen Cabernet Sauvignon 2004, score=3+

We felt that this is a classic Cali Cab. Nose has predominant black cherry and vanilla without funk. Palate is also fruits driven with mostly black cherry with usual oak derived flavors. Nice but mild tannin with long finish. Nothing wrong with this wine. Everything is smooth and polished. Consensus was Cali Cab and we were right. This is Trefethen cab 2004. Trefethen is very old (for Napa, founded 1968) vineyard. The grapes are from Oak Knoll district and here is their description of ‘04 vintage of cab. “An unusually warm, dry spring led to early budbreak and set the stage for an early harvest. Summer temperatures were seasonably warm, with early September bringing a memorable heat spell. The early season heat-stress resulted in smaller grape clusters and berries with intense, concentrated aromas and flavors.”

2. Ojai Syrah Melville 2004, score=3+

Again, we could tell what was the grape varietal but not the exact origin. The color is dark almost black with the help from the shape of the bottle, without tasting, we said “syrah”. Nose is a classic plum and black pepper. Syrupy mouth feel with more plum, black cherry, coffee with spices. Nice well-integrated tannin with long finish. We immediately thought of high-end Aussie Shiraz but this happens to be from Southern California, Ojai vineyard. Piroca bought this one before and we all liked it. RP gave 94 and here is his comments; "From the cool Santa Rita Hills, the 2004 Syrah Melville reveals classic blackberry, blueberry, charcoal, acacia flower, and bacon fat aromas. Stunningly rich, full-bodied, thick, and juicy with a smoky character in the mouth that is not apparent in the fruit-laden nose, this is a beautifully proportioned, full-bodied Syrah that should drink nicely for 10-15 years."
We tasted this in March 22, 2008 and we said “Such a classic nose of Syrah; very intense nice nose with plum, black fruits, some bacon fat and black pepper. Nice smooth mouth feel with lots of black fruits and plum, mocha and caramel. Nice structured tannin but some felt too much oak. Finish is relatively short. But overall, this is a fine North American Syrah....we like this better than fake "fruits" laden low-price Australian Shiraz for sure”

3. Quilceda Creek Cabernet Sauvignon 1998, score=3+

Now this is totally different from the first two. The brown rim indicates the age of this wine. Perfumy nose (old classic perfume) with mineral dusts and after the rain notes. Fruits are there but much muted and restrained, mostly black fruits with some earthiness to it. Tannin is very ripe and well-integrated and long finish, a classic old world style. We used to not like this type of wine but most of us now developed a taste for it and appreciate it. We thought of European and thought that this must be from Italy. Uncle-N thought of Brunello and Winepath suggested Barolo or other piedmont wines. Super Tuscan was also mentioned. We were all wrong. This is from Washington State “Quilceda Creek”. According to their drinkability chart, 1998 should be best drunk now and before 2020.

Here are some stats for 1998 cab ; “Winemakers: Alex Golitzin, Paul Golitzin, Marv Crum; Varietal: 97% Cabernet Sauvignon, 3% Cabernet Frank; Vineyards: Champoux, Klipsun, and Tapteil; Barrels: 100% French Oak; Time in Barrel: 22 Months; Time in Bottle before release: 9 months; Case Production: 2,500 Cases.”
Here are some review notes; "Bright ruby color. Floral, minerally nose combines cassis, blackberry, bitter chocolate and pungent oak. Thick, rich and very concentrated, with a flavor of chocolate-covered plum. Lovely combination of lush texture and firm underlying spine; lively acids give the fruit impressive purity. Finishes very long and subtle, with suaver tannins than this winery's '97 cabernets. Offers compelling sweetness without losing its freshness or balance. Score: 91-93 Barrel Sample (Stephen Tanzer, International Wine Cellar)".
"Blackberry jam, juniper berries, and spices can be found in the rich aromatics of the stunning, dark-colored 1998 Cabernet Sauvignon. A wine of awesome breadth, width, concentration, and power, this full-bodied beauty is crammed with lush layers of blackberries, plums, and cassis. This offering's prodigious fruit envelopes its copious silky tannin. Additionally, it displays an extraordinarily long finish. Drink it between 2005 and 2016. Score: 96 (Pierre-Antoine Rovani, Robert M. Parker, Jr.’s Wine Advocate)" .

4. Dunn Napa Cabernet Sauvignon 1999, score=2~3+

Here comes a stinker. Color has brown rim indicative of its age. Nose has rubber tire, sulfa and according to Piroca “green pepper” (Uncle-E, our green pepper specialist, was not here to confirm this). Palate is also old style; muted black fruits with black cherry predominating with layers of complex flavors ending in firm strong tannin. Some felt that tannin is still too strong. Nice long finish. Winepath did not like this one. But after some time, stinky nose dissipated and more complex flavors developed and Piroca liked this one best--thus, the range of scores from 2~3+. The tasters felt that this is European; Italian, Spanish, even French—possibly Bordeaux. But this is from Napa. Uncle-N had Dunn cab before (much younger vintage) and felt that it was too tannic and wanted to taste older vintage.

Here are some of the reviews in 2002; “90 points Stephen Tanzer's International Wine Cellar: "Bright ruby-red. Wild aromas of blackberry, black cherry, espresso, leather, raw meat, tobacco and mint. Juicy, sweet and plump, with intense but rather rustic flavors. Finishes with lingering sweet fruit and surprisingly ripe tannins. Not squeaky-clean but long on personality." (Nov/Dec '02)".
"89 points Wine Spectator: "A dense, chewy, muscular wine marked by pencil lead, currant, cedar, mineral, iodine and dill flavors. Tightly wound and immense, and sufficiently tannic to cellar for up to a decade. Best from 2005 through 2012. (10/02)”.

This one really needed decanting.

Not by design but we ended up comparing two groups of new and old style wines. Which ones are better? Hard to tell. We feel both have occasions at which they will be at their best and we like both styles.