Cellar Mini-Disaster
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Tasted Sunday, December 15, 2013 - Wednesday, January 15, 2014 by vanpe003 with 555 views
Introduction
Looking through the cellar for some holiday wines, I was surprised to find that apparently the door on one of my Eurocaves hadn't sealed adequately...resulting in a moisture buildup that unfortunately led to some mold growth. Amazed at how widespread the issue was - three trashed racks, about 15 bottles or so that were beyond cleaning, and many more that have hopefully been adequately cleaned up with hydrogen peroxide. Those that were beyond cleaning - a few of them given away as gifts with a caveat of "consume these early and don't put them in your cellar". A few yet to be tried. But here's the rest. A collection of bottles that for the most part I hadn't planned on drinking quite yet.
2004 Merus Cabernet Sauvignon
USA, California, Napa Valley
(1/5/2014)
Pop/pour. Actually a bit monolithic at opening, so waited 30 minutes or so.
With the extra air in the glass: on the nose - whereas it was originally dark fruit and dark fruit only, 30 minutes later a good dose of florals and green grass has emerged to add a sense of freshness along with a more noticeable sense of cassis. On the palate, it's lightened up a bit showing better balance overall, but a need for even more air to round out a few rough edges that have emerged. Some tannins make a stronger appearance now, with a slight astringency on the back end.
Will try to check in later. The wine started initially on the pop as big, one-dimensional and lush. 30-45 minutes later - more balanced, but some of the balancing notes seem a bit out of sorts. Will see if they fold back in over the next several hours. 92-94 points for now, though it's hard to evaluate given the evolution over the first 45 minutes.
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2004 Robert Foley Claret 94 Points
USA, California, Napa Valley
(1/4/2014)
Ok. I guess I haven't entirely outgrown this style of wine, particularly when it's this well done.
Pop/pour. On the nose dark fruits, smoky oak and licorice. On the palate, rich body with enough acid to lift it up. Oak provides notes of tar and vanilla. There's also a hint of menthol that creeps in on the background. Finish is extremely long and lingering.
The longer this sits in the glass, some light but manageable tannins show on the finish. The acidity becomes a bit more pronounced. Maybe a bit too much so for now. Was going to rate 95 points but dropping a point for now.
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2003 Ferrari-Carano Prevail Back Forty 91 Points
USA, California, Sonoma County, Alexander Valley
(1/4/2014)
Pop/pour. I enjoy this quite a bit more than I did its stablemate, the 2003 Prevail West Face, though I haven't had the West Face in about a year.
In contrast, the Back Forty seems rich, natural and fully developed. Dark fruit with hints of chalky minerality to keep it from being overly brooding. A reasonably long finish rounds out the overall package. A few rough edges here and there (a tinge of alcohol and astringency) keep my score down, but unlike the West Face, these are distinctly in the background and pair off against richer fruit IMHO.
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2005 Scarecrow Cabernet Sauvignon 97 Points
USA, California, Napa Valley, Rutherford
(12/24/2013)
Decanted for 2 hours. Aromatic on the nose, cab fruit, sweet perfume and a hint of something that evokes a fresh cut field for me. On the palate, extraordinary precision and balance. A nice dose of cassis adds an accent here and contributes to an extremely long finish.
Perhaps my best cab of the year. Everything is as it should be and in perfect balance. I allowed myself to fall off the list as prices started creeping up, but now feel as though I might have made a mistake......
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2004 Anderson's Conn Valley Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon Estate Reserve 92 Points
USA, California, Napa Valley
(12/21/2013)
I tasted this a couple months ago, and thought it was rather full bodied. Tonight, this bottle is a notch down in fruit depth from a '04 Keenan also opened. On opening, this is the more approachable of the two wines. Mid to mid-heavy weight. A feeling of minerality, chalk, maybe a little Dentyne / cinnamon that reminds me a bit of the note I find often in Dunn Howell Mtn wines. Very fine tannins on the finish are generally resolved. Not much yet in terms of secondary notes or character.
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2000 Chateau St. Jean Cabernet Sauvignon Cinq Cépages 93 Points
USA, California, Sonoma County
(1/5/2014)
Pop/pour + 15 minutes in glass: on the nose, relatively more rich than I was expecting given the vintage and prior outings. Red fruit with a hint of green tightness. On the palate, decent balance but less ripe fruit as compared to other vintages of this wine. Overall still remains soft on the palate, with some tannins remaining. Decent wine for the vintage. G. greatly prefers this style to the '04 Foley Claret opened last night. Go figure.
To that point, people who like a more restrained Cab / Cab blend will enjoy this styling. Drinks well now, and should carry for at least another several years. Probably 90-91 points.
Update Day 2: I normally don't get around to writing second day updates, but in this case, the change was so dramatically positive I found it noteworthy. Any rough edges, any hint of tightness - gone. On the nose, a sense of mature cab with the but still more fruit dominant with just hints of secondary development. On the palate - silky smooth and surprisingly rich. Tonight, this tastes more like an aged Left Bank than it does contemporary Napa. 93-94 points tonight, being as objective as I can be, and frankly I like this better than that score. This is one of those unexpected pleasant surprises that makes this hobby interesting.
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2001 Chateau St. Jean Cabernet Sauvignon Cinq Cépages
USA, California, Sonoma County
(1/5/2014)
Not nearly the outing I've had with the past couple of bottles. Masquerades as being corked on both nose and palate, but not enough that I can say so for sure. Leaner and sharper than the 2000 also opened, and that just shouldn't be. In any event, not my favorite. Unrated, as I'd bet this is flawed in a way that is under my radar.
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