2001 Harlan Estate The Maiden
Community Tasting Note
dcwino wrote:
Friday, July 13, 2012 - The first impression is a slight hint of cassis, sweet spices coming from alcohol and extremely oaky dry tannins. What to make out of a wine that Bob rated 93 pts and none of the CT ratings not lower than 90pts where some of the notes are written by the palates that I trust? I was very much looking forward to this bottle as only a month ago I tried a great bottle of the 03 maiden and rated 95 pts.
I tried the 01 maiden over three nights hoping that the fruit will emerge to balance alcohol. The tannins remained woody and dry, perhaps the third night, slightly calmed down. The alcohol remained noticeable and the fruit remained muted. I find the CT user Marc’s note very useful and interesting. “It will infuriate people who despair of the high alcohol, worked style of Napa cabernet. Currently this has nothing to do with the Bordeaux benchmark. Massive, rich and porty on the nose, this wine is layered but it ultimately comes across as monolithic - one needs to searching for the layers.”. I am sensitive to high alcohol but can appreciate the wines like saxum or SQN. I however am not sure the time will solve the disjointed nature of this wine including lack of the fresh fruit expression. My rating for this wine reflects the respect for other taster’s assessments as well as my belief in 20 point based 100 point scale unless the wine is clearly flawed. This was purchased from the winery and always kept at my temperature controlled cellar.
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