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| Drinking Windows and Values |
| Community Tasting History |
| Community Tasting Notes (average 90.6 pts. and median of 91 pts. in 120 notes) - hiding notes with no text | | | Tasted by bootaylor76 on 7/28/2022 & rated 92 points: Last bottle and was a little tight at first but opened up nicely to a soft juicy merlot blend. One of our favorite red blends from Napa
Cork & Taylor Wine Podcast (1133 views) | | | Tasted by merryberry on 5/29/2022 & rated 91 points: Dirty brown red. Blueberry, leather, and spice nose, after being really stinky/mushroom-y most of the first night. Medium to full bodied, black cherries, woody tannins, white pepper, earth, smoke, good acid, and a long finish. Great with food and on its own. (1133 views) | | | Tasted by bootaylor76 on 4/23/2022 & rated 93 points: Consistent with vibrant fruit! Silky and smooth. Only bottle left abs one of our favorite producers
Cork & Taylor Wine Podcast (1204 views) | | | Tasted by bootaylor76 on 4/1/2022 & rated 93 points: I love Blackbird abs great wine. Nice merlot based blend that everyone loves. We were lucky to have Winemaker Aaron Pott on the Cork & Taylor Wine Podcast. Uber talented and great interview
Cork & Taylor Wine Podcast (1200 views) | | | Tasted by callmeacab22 on 7/25/2020 & rated 88 points: This bottle was better than the one I opened in 2017. Definitely a nice merlot based blend, but I still don't find it makes my expectations for a higher price point bottle. I think it is at its peak for those that still have some. (2349 views) | | | Tasted by Intellectual Sasquatch on 7/18/2020 & rated 91 points: One of 5 different bottles around the fire pit. Pop & pour. Just a great wine & drinking nicely now. Sadly, this was my last. (1398 views) | | | Tasted by qtsam11 on 4/6/2020 & rated 92 points: To my delight, I found this hiding in plain sight, albeit covered in dust. Brushing away the dust, I expected to see 2014 or even 2015 on the label, and found myself surprised to see 2012 staring back at me. I thought I drank the last bottle if this years ago. Popped and poured. At 7 1/2 years old, this is showing some nice bottle age in the garnet color and bricking at the rim. Graphite with a hint of leather and crushed berries in the nose. In the mouth the fruit is present, but not overpowering. Blueberries and blackberries for days. I don't know whether today is a Monday or a Thursday (my calendar says it is Monday?), but I do know this wine is drinking great right now. Drink it if you've got it! (1742 views) | | | Tasted by Intellectual Sasquatch on 1/25/2020 & rated 90 points: I thought this was a little tight upon opening, but came around nicely over the course of 2 hours. Still very full, but maybe a bit less fruit from last bottle. (1771 views) | | | Tasted by Intellectual Sasquatch on 12/21/2019 & rated 91 points: No decant. Enjoyed with leftover chicken wings from Wegman’s and French fries. This wine is in a great spot right now: very soft, but still plenty of fruit. I would think it could go for another two or three years - easily. (1731 views) | | | Tasted by hdgraham4 on 10/16/2019 & rated 92 points: The overbearing pepperiness seemed to dissipate with a short decant. Really quite pleasant right now. (1560 views) | | | Tasted by hdgraham4 on 2/5/2019 & rated 91 points: Very peppery, lots of blackberries, leather and tobacco. (1921 views) | | | Tasted by Bill Johnson on 2/1/2019 & rated 91 points: Dark peppery flavor. Blackberry,graphite and bramble. The cab franc dominates. (1576 views) | | | Tasted by hhyder on 1/31/2019 & rated 93 points: Very nice Bordeaux blend. Very integrated at this point with good balance of acidity, texture, and black/blue fruits. Some red licorice on the nose along with bell pepper and some slight black pepper as others have noted. (1481 views) | | | Tasted by RPerro on 11/27/2018 & rated 91 points: Consistent with prior tasting notes. Drink now - 2022. (1604 views) | | | Tasted by BigBoy_Sonoma on 9/9/2018 & rated 70 points: Black fruit, pepper, more pepper, cedar, earthy notes with unbalanced acidity. Pepper overwhelms the wine it’s on the front, mid palate and finish. It was decanted 3+ hours and the pepper is still dominates. I am fan of blackbird but this is a huge disappointment. C- (1816 views) | | | Tasted by vandal16 on 6/10/2018 & rated 91 points: Good Bordeaux Style Blend. Dark fruit flavors with nice balance of oak and vanilla. (1600 views) | | | Tasted by dase13 on 5/25/2018 & rated 93 points: Consistent with prior notes. Getting better each year. Color of dark red. Scents of raspberry, blackberry and blueberry. Tastes consistent with scents. 58% Merlot, 32% Cabernet Franc, and 10% Cabernet. Still better than 2011 and 2013 vintages. (1663 views) | | | Tasted by CIAgrad86 on 4/15/2018 & rated 92 points: great wine (1790 views) | | | Tasted by ABOVETHEINFLUENCE on 3/16/2018: 4hr slow ox,musky heady nose with dill and incense, drying red fruit on palate nice cut cherry skin,gamey,pungent wet tobacco,that smells like a bold right bank,salty finish poured a small glass day 1 then re-corked the bottle, now day 2 balance (1691 views) | | | Tasted by Winedog1 on 2/16/2018 & rated 93 points: Upgraded to 93 after 24 hours. (1831 views) | | | Tasted by Intellectual Sasquatch on 1/13/2018 & rated 91 points: Another great bottle. (1376 views) | | | Tasted by Intellectual Sasquatch on 1/5/2018 & rated 91 points: Decanted and enjoyed over 3 1/2 hours. Very nice new world style blend. Drinking well now but I think the fruit should last at least 5 years if cellared properly. My plan is to drink one every year for the next 4 years (my inventory balance) to see how it evolves. (1318 views) | | | Tasted by callmeacab22 on 8/19/2017 & rated 88 points: A nice Merlot blend, but I'm underwhelmed especially for a quality red at this price point. Lacking flavor depth. Would not buy again. (2257 views) | | | Tasted by dase13 on 7/14/2017 & rated 93 points: Always enjoy this. Consistent with prior notes. (2599 views) | | | Tasted by Nutty08 on 6/16/2017 & rated 92 points: This is an intense concentrated wine. Vanilla oak influence still sticks out a bit, but has nice blue and red fruit with fine somewhat stiff but sweet tannins that hang on the finish. Quite lovely overall, very much a Napa style of power, plushness, and ripeness. Decanted 4hrs. (2731 views) | | | Only displaying the 25 most recent notes - click to see all notes for this wine... |
| By Antonio Galloni
Vinous, New Releases from Napa Valley: 2012 and 2013 (Dec 2014) (9/30/2010)
(Blackbird Vineyards Arise Napa Valley) Subscribe to see review text. |
NOTE: Scores and reviews are the property of Vinous. (manage subscription channels) |
| Blackbird Vineyards Producer website
Purchased by Michael Polenske in 2003, Blackbird Vineyards (a former walnut orchard first planted with 5, 717 Merlot vines in 1997) is now an ultra premium label in its own right. Fittingly, the word 'Merlot' is French patois for 'little blackbird.'
An early harbinger of Blackbird's potential arose when Mia Klein of Dalla Valle fame created a Blackbird Vineyard designate for her highly acclaimed 1999 Selene Merlot (no less than 95% of the fruit in the bottle must be from the named vineyard).
Three of the top wine critics in the industry - Robert Parker, Stephen Tanzer, and Wine Spectator's James Laube - scored this wine in the 90s.
Since the premier release of our 2003 vintage, Blackbird Vineyards' winemaking team has handcrafted truly expressive wines with a focus on the varieties of Merlot, Cabernet Franc, and Cabernet Sauvignon. By utilizing the natural advantage of a
10-acre estate vineyard which produces exceptional Merlot in the Oak Knoll District-along with meticulously sourcing fruit of comparable quality-our portfolio reflects artisanal, terroir-driven wines of pedigree with each vintage.2012 Blackbird Vineyards AriseWinemaker Notes:
58% Merlot - 32% Cabernet Franc - 10% Cabernet Sauvignon
Every artist needs a muse...
Arise is the most aspiring wine in the Blackbird Vineyards repertoire. Harvested, vinified, and barrel aged with an identical commitment to quality and excellence as our core wines, every vintage of this sister label Bordeaux-inspired
blend is hand-tuned to express the luscious flavor profiles and lithe structure that only comes from exceptional fruit. Arise captures the charming essences of Napa Valley's unique terroir.
Tasting Notes:
"The 2012 Arise exudes aromas of blackberry, black currant, cocoa powder, clove, forest floor and cedar with a robust approach on the palate. With present tannins and good length, the Arise exhibits flavors of strawberry and cherry
in a lingering finish. With no frost, a mild spring and summer, and a peaceful fall, Arise benefitted from what some say was an ideal growing season." - Winemaker, Aaron PottRed Bordeaux BlendRed Bordeaux is generally made from a blend of grapes. Permitted grapes are Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, Merlot, Petit Verdot, Malbec and rarely Carménère.Today Carménère is rarely used, with Château Clerc Milon, a fifth growth Bordeaux, being one of the few to still retain Carménère vines. As of July 2019, Bordeaux wineries authorized the use of four new red grapes to combat temperature increases in Bordeaux. These newly approved grapes are Marselan, Touriga Nacional, Castets, and Arinarnoa.
Wineries all over the world aspire to making wines in a Bordeaux style. In 1988, a group of American vintners formed The Meritage Association to identify wines made in this way. Although most Meritage wines come from California, there are members of the Meritage Association in 18 states and five other countries, including Argentina, Australia, Canada, Israel, and Mexico.USAAmerican wine has been produced since the 1500s, with the first widespread production beginning in New Mexico in 1628. Today, wine production is undertaken in all fifty states, with California producing 84% of all U.S. wine. The continent of North America is home to several native species of grape, including Vitis labrusca, Vitis riparia, Vitis rotundifolia, and Vitis vulpina, but the wine-making industry is based almost entirely on the cultivation of the European Vitis vinifera, which was introduced by European settlers. With more than 1,100,000 acres (4,500 km2) under vine, the United States is the fourth-largest wine producing country in the world, after Italy, Spain, and France.California2021 vintage: "Unlike almost all other areas of the state, the Russian River Valley had higher than normal crops in 2021, which has made for a wine of greater generosity and fruit forwardness than some of its stablemates." - Morgan Twain-Peterson Napa Valley Napa Valley Wineries and Wine (Napa Valley Vintners)Napa ValleySt. Helena |
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