Not scoring this because it definitely tastes like it's past its prime ... but even given that, it's still far from undrinkable. Still good fruit and solid structure, just that unmistakable sense of fading, and just a touch of bitter. Lots of particulate matter, too ... and that's not even counting the cork bits that got strained out when I decanted! (The bottom half of the cork disintegrated - I ended up having to push the rest of it down into the bottle, and pour through the finest mesh strainer I had. I thought for sure it would be completely gone.)
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Popped and poured. Dark crimson color. Nose of raspberry and black cherry with some slightly candied red fruit and jam coming through. More of the same on the palate with raspberry jam and a bit of peppery spice. Medium+ acidity with low tannins, this wine is still quite alive due to the acid and still has a ton of fruit left which really surprised me. A bit thin on the palate and finish though. I would drink up if holding any as I do not see this getting any better but still a enjoyable wine for sure.
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Kind of a pale shadow of its former self. Still delicious, but much less petite sirah-y than it was. I think it's drinking well now and am glad I decided not to tempt fate by holding it.
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Color/Appearance: 5/5 - Bold, dense burgundy (the color, not the wine) color right out to the edges.
Nose/Bouquet: 12/15 - Expressive nose begins with black pepper, blackberry and woodiness. Later, the black pepper fades and is replaced by subtle aromas of Twizzlers and sugar-coated blueberry candy.
Flavor : 7/10 - Better after a decant of a few hours. Entry is very smooth and the inevitable grip of the tannic jaws are carried nicely by the full body of the wine. While the structure and body are in full force, the flavors are missing depth. There's cassis, blackberry, and dark chocolate in there, but the overall effect is that of a VERY dark, bittersweet chocolate where you wish it was about 5% less pure cacao.
Finish: 9/10 - Initially this goes through a series of, "I'm fruity," "I'm tannic," "I'm oaked," phases before you're aware that your teeth have been frosted with delicious Petite Sirah, and then this nice amalgamation of bittersweet chocolate, blackberry, and vanilla that just glows for long afterwards.
Aging Potential: 3/5 – Hard to say. Right now, this wine will not see any improvement from short-term cellaring, making it either a "drink now" selection or a "wait a decade" wine to lay down through its dumb phase and hope it comes out of its cocoon well.
Overall/Quality: 4/5 - Of the three bottles I've had since 2007, my opinion is that this was drinking better then than it is now. It remains a solid, well-made, excellent wine.
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Had this with some grilled lamb loin chops. Decanted about 45 minutes, and at first was tannic with little fruit. After another 20-30 minutes, it opened up and fruit came through. It was well balanced with smooth tannins. Went wornderfully with the lamb. Color is dark and deep. Nice bouqet. Nice to know that I have more of this.
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Not nearly as powerful as the first few times. I think the drinking window for this vintage is way off; may already be entering its extended 'dumb' period. Structure was there, but the nose, fruit, flavor, and finish were all much more subdued.
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Dark purple. Open for 1 hour. Powerful cocoa, licorice and dark fruits on the nose. On the palate very short initial burst of dark fruit and short,short finish with a little asparagus at the very end. Big tannins and hopeful this wine will do better over time. Great nose and disappointing taste.
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A very good petite sirah. Beautiful purple red color. Excellent mouth feel, complex on palate with a long finish. Pretty strong tannins. It really opened up between 1-2 hours.
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This is a hard one to rate, because it changed (and changed quickly) while in the glass over dinner. I'd say it's a bit disjointed, but enjoyable, and every now and then it is really quite good.
Very dark, dark plummy color. A little cedar and eucalyptus on the nose. Peppery and jammy, with a bunch of tannins.
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Decanted for 8-9 hours prior to drinking -- I was hoping to replicate the effects of long-term aging, but I don't think it worked..... During the 2nd-3rd hours of decanting is was outstanding. Dense, mouth-coating fruit with an extremely rich flavor. Lots of red fruit, but good depth and interestingness. Smooth with a nice finish. Easily 90+. Around the 5th hour it developed an unpleasant sourness on the finish. Attack and mid-palate were both very nice, but the finish was just plain bad -- and it got much worse over time. By the 6th-7th hour the attack and mid-palate were still quite good, but the finish was repulsive. Probably too oxidized to score accurately, but I felt it was on the lower end of 85-86.
When we finally drank it, over the 9th-11th hours of decanting, the finish was starting to re-integrate with the wine but it was still very disjointed and sour. Everything before the finish was still quite good -- still mouth-coating, although the dense, massive fruit was replaced with some subtler, more elegant fruit. I thought it was pretty decent, but several friends disliked it quite a bit. It was not a hit at our tasting. The awkward sourness never did disappear (at least not before we finished the bottle) but it did subside a bit with further time. A good wine overall, but the long decanting time was not good for it. I'll probably drink my remaining bottle within the next year, rather than waiting to see how/whether it improves long-term.
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Wasn't as dazzled by this as much as I thought I'd be but that's not to say it wasn't a good PS. Full and complex mouth feel with a long finish. Strong tannins and beautiful dark almost purplish color. Going to see if I can actually hold on to my other bottle for awhile and see what this tastes like in 10 years or so as I've heard good things about aged PS. Of course I'll probably break down and drink it next week.
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No detailed notes, but having had more of a glass this time around, I'll 'gut rate' this 91 pts. Very full, smooth, and balance for such a powerful wine. Paired exceptionally well with smoked chicken & ribs from an all-day cookout.
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I, like you, busted out one of my 2000s last night. I really enjoyed it. I've not got the best handle on my pallet yet but the best word I've got for it is "round". First glass was nice and big, with lots of dark berries but none of the sourness that would otherwise have been there. as it sat in the decanter for the next few hours it really did open up a lot to reveal some decent complexity. It did remain accessible however (ie I didn't have to think too hard to enjoy it.) All in all it probably out classed the leftover pizza and Lost that I had it with but...
I've still got the second half bottle for tonight since people were also quite excited about the next day potential of this wine.
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Consumed as part of a vertical tasting versus 2001 and 2000. The 2000 was the first tasted and was the bronze medal winte of the trio. Had elements of dark cherry black pepper, and blackberry with a somewhat sour/bitter finish. Gut-rating of 89-90+ points, but no specific notes to back it up.
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This inky black wine is giving off intense licorice/anise with some blueberry, black cherry and menthol. Something like dark berry flavored Sambuca on the palate, still tight tannins, full bodied with a nice long finish.
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1/27/2019 - PolarBear22 wrote: 90 Points
Over 10 years since the first bottle. This has matured nicely. Still has dark fruits and blueberry. Nice tannin and acidity. Had a lot of sediment.
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3/19/2017 - foobarski Likes this wine:
Not scoring this because it definitely tastes like it's past its prime ... but even given that, it's still far from undrinkable. Still good fruit and solid structure, just that unmistakable sense of fading, and just a touch of bitter. Lots of particulate matter, too ... and that's not even counting the cork bits that got strained out when I decanted! (The bottom half of the cork disintegrated - I ended up having to push the rest of it down into the bottle, and pour through the finest mesh strainer I had. I thought for sure it would be completely gone.)
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8/30/2014 - Rich S Likes this wine: 90 Points
Popped and poured. Dark crimson color. Nose of raspberry and black cherry with some slightly candied red fruit and jam coming through. More of the same on the palate with raspberry jam and a bit of peppery spice. Medium+ acidity with low tannins, this wine is still quite alive due to the acid and still has a ton of fruit left which really surprised me. A bit thin on the palate and finish though. I would drink up if holding any as I do not see this getting any better but still a enjoyable wine for sure.
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3/26/2010 - aces219 wrote:
Kind of a pale shadow of its former self. Still delicious, but much less petite sirah-y than it was. I think it's drinking well now and am glad I decided not to tempt fate by holding it.
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12/11/2009 - Corrado wrote: 90 Points
Color/Appearance: 5/5 - Bold, dense burgundy (the color, not the wine) color right out to the edges.
Nose/Bouquet: 12/15 - Expressive nose begins with black pepper, blackberry and woodiness. Later, the black pepper fades and is replaced by subtle aromas of Twizzlers and sugar-coated blueberry candy.
Flavor : 7/10 - Better after a decant of a few hours. Entry is very smooth and the inevitable grip of the tannic jaws are carried nicely by the full body of the wine. While the structure and body are in full force, the flavors are missing depth. There's cassis, blackberry, and dark chocolate in there, but the overall effect is that of a VERY dark, bittersweet chocolate where you wish it was about 5% less pure cacao.
Finish: 9/10 - Initially this goes through a series of, "I'm fruity," "I'm tannic," "I'm oaked," phases before you're aware that your teeth have been frosted with delicious Petite Sirah, and then this nice amalgamation of bittersweet chocolate, blackberry, and vanilla that just glows for long afterwards.
Aging Potential: 3/5 – Hard to say. Right now, this wine will not see any improvement from short-term cellaring, making it either a "drink now" selection or a "wait a decade" wine to lay down through its dumb phase and hope it comes out of its cocoon well.
Overall/Quality: 4/5 - Of the three bottles I've had since 2007, my opinion is that this was drinking better then than it is now. It remains a solid, well-made, excellent wine.
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8/24/2008 - PolarBear22 wrote: 89 Points
Had this with some grilled lamb loin chops. Decanted about 45 minutes, and at first was tannic with little fruit. After another 20-30 minutes, it opened up and fruit came through. It was well balanced with smooth tannins. Went wornderfully with the lamb. Color is dark and deep. Nice bouqet. Nice to know that I have more of this.
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4/4/2008 - Corrado wrote:
Not nearly as powerful as the first few times. I think the drinking window for this vintage is way off; may already be entering its extended 'dumb' period. Structure was there, but the nose, fruit, flavor, and finish were all much more subdued.
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12/9/2007 - zeppo55 wrote: 86 Points
Dark purple. Open for 1 hour. Powerful cocoa, licorice and dark fruits on the nose. On the palate very short initial burst of dark fruit and short,short finish with a little
asparagus at the very end. Big tannins and hopeful this wine will do better over time. Great nose and disappointing taste.
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11/12/2007 - tayto wrote: 88 Points
Nice, Dry Petite Sirah
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11/8/2007 - creining wrote: 90 Points
A very good petite sirah. Beautiful purple red color. Excellent mouth feel, complex on palate with a long finish. Pretty strong tannins. It really opened up between 1-2 hours.
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8/16/2007 - jawlz wrote: 88 Points
This is a hard one to rate, because it changed (and changed quickly) while in the glass over dinner. I'd say it's a bit disjointed, but enjoyable, and every now and then it is really quite good.
Very dark, dark plummy color. A little cedar and eucalyptus on the nose. Peppery and jammy, with a bunch of tannins.
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7/25/2007 - spautz wrote: 88 Points
Decanted for 8-9 hours prior to drinking -- I was hoping to replicate the effects of long-term aging, but I don't think it worked.....
During the 2nd-3rd hours of decanting is was outstanding. Dense, mouth-coating fruit with an extremely rich flavor. Lots of red fruit, but good depth and interestingness. Smooth with a nice finish. Easily 90+.
Around the 5th hour it developed an unpleasant sourness on the finish. Attack and mid-palate were both very nice, but the finish was just plain bad -- and it got much worse over time. By the 6th-7th hour the attack and mid-palate were still quite good, but the finish was repulsive. Probably too oxidized to score accurately, but I felt it was on the lower end of 85-86.
When we finally drank it, over the 9th-11th hours of decanting, the finish was starting to re-integrate with the wine but it was still very disjointed and sour. Everything before the finish was still quite good -- still mouth-coating, although the dense, massive fruit was replaced with some subtler, more elegant fruit. I thought it was pretty decent, but several friends disliked it quite a bit. It was not a hit at our tasting. The awkward sourness never did disappear (at least not before we finished the bottle) but it did subside a bit with further time. A good wine overall, but the long decanting time was not good for it. I'll probably drink my remaining bottle within the next year, rather than waiting to see how/whether it improves long-term.
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6/9/2007 - javadrinker wrote: 88 Points
Wasn't as dazzled by this as much as I thought I'd be but that's not to say it wasn't a good PS. Full and complex mouth feel with a long finish. Strong tannins and beautiful dark almost purplish color. Going to see if I can actually hold on to my other bottle for awhile and see what this tastes like in 10 years or so as I've heard good things about aged PS. Of course I'll probably break down and drink it next week.
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6/3/2007 - DOH! wrote: 89 Points
Very nice petite syrah; rich, ripe and fruity; went great with spicy Italian food.
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5/28/2007 - Corrado wrote:
No detailed notes, but having had more of a glass this time around, I'll 'gut rate' this 91 pts. Very full, smooth, and balance for such a powerful wine. Paired exceptionally well with smoked chicken & ribs from an all-day cookout.
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4/26/2007 - Syrrys wrote:
I, like you, busted out one of my 2000s last night. I really enjoyed it. I've not got the best handle on my pallet yet but the best word I've got for it is "round". First glass was nice and big, with lots of dark berries but none of the sourness that would otherwise have been there. as it sat in the decanter for the next few hours it really did open up a lot to reveal some decent complexity. It did remain accessible however (ie I didn't have to think too hard to enjoy it.) All in all it probably out classed the leftover pizza and Lost that I had it with but...
I've still got the second half bottle for tonight since people were also quite excited about the next day potential of this wine.
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4/22/2007 - richc wrote:
Also tasted as part of a vertical tasting (2000-2002) and was a close second to the 2001 imo. Nice berry flavors with a bit of a bitter finish.
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4/22/2007 - Akaz wrote:
This was my favorite of a 3 year veritical tasting (2000-2002). It's a big, yet balanced wine with tobacco and black cherry notes.
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4/15/2007 - Corrado wrote: 90 Points
Consumed as part of a vertical tasting versus 2001 and 2000. The 2000 was the first tasted and was the bronze medal winte of the trio. Had elements of dark cherry black pepper, and blackberry with a somewhat sour/bitter finish. Gut-rating of 89-90+ points, but no specific notes to back it up.
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3/16/2007 - AstonM wrote: 91 Points
This inky black wine is giving off intense licorice/anise with some blueberry, black cherry and menthol. Something like dark berry flavored Sambuca on the palate, still tight tannins, full bodied with a nice long finish.
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