learningandenjoying
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2014 No Girls Grenache
4/14/2024 - learningandenjoying wrote:
This went from an 85 to a 92+ over three days. Read on.
Side by side with 2014 Rasa primus inter pares Grenache. Both from the Rocks District. The No Girls was nearly undrinkable for at least 2+ hours (85, barely reaching 89) due to the insidious barnyard aromatics of the Cayuse wines, which is NOT a characteristic of The Rocks District terroir as some people assert. It is a characteristic of the Cayuse winemaking style and the surely less than pristine winery operations (Brett everywhere?). If the smell was just a result of a reductive winemaking philosophy the "barnyard" would be mostly aromatic and clear off in 10-20 minutes. If it was a terroir characteristic it would be more slight in both the aromatics and palate and present mostly as beautifully aromatic earth, not "stink." Yes, you can sense the underlying quality of the palate balance and complexity as long as you do not breathe at any time during the "drinking."
Day 2 (pumped) the foul smell was gone, but unfortunately, so was everything else.... All the terroir, all the potential complexity that had struggled to get past the stink was simply gone from both the aromatics and the palate! All that remained was a super smooth colored liquid.
Day 3 some of the palate complexity returned but the aromatics were slight at best (but no stink). This is now up in score to a 91+. I have had a lot of other Cayuse wines including other No Girls Grenache and this bottling is just too much of a struggle. I know 2014 was not the best vintage, but Rasa managed to negotiate the same AVA and grape pretty well.
Day 3 plus 30 minutes in the glass: This is becoming a really nice wine... 92+ I am flummoxed. But in a good way. Finally.
This is not a wine to pop and pour. Expect a struggle and need for patience to let this find its way to being drinkable. When it does it has really good complexity, depth, and smoothness. Only you can judge if it is worth it. You can't force it.
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2013 Eisele Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon
4/13/2024 - learningandenjoying Likes this wine: 98 Points
D15; G5; 4.5*+9.5+5+9*+9*+5+4.5*=97+ Initial taste showed this was very close to ready to drink, but chose a light, short decant to open it for immediate enjoyment, which it did. It is hard to express the shear deliciousness of this wine. For the first hour it was nearly impossible not to drink the entire bottle, but knew we had to pace it for the steak to come. Some Cabs really need a nice steak to shine, but this one was probably at its best just sipping throughout the evening. It was so balanced and so good it needed nothing. My main downgrade would come at about the 3-hour mark when it seemed to start losing some of its perfect balance and started to show more of an acidic edge. So, take it from me and go ahead and drink it up in the first two hours and forget trying to draw out the pleasure late into the evening! Some sensory notes: crushed rocks, minerality, blackcurrant (cassis), ripe blueberry (bilberry), graphite, faint iron dust, light oak, sage, cedar, some dark cherry, tobacco, leather, well-integrated tannin. Super balanced. Beautiful. This wine just kept giving and giving. As Parker stated in his October 2016 review when he scored it 100 points, "The wine is off-the-charts great." He is sometimes over the top in his praise and scores, but in this case he is absolutely correct. You are soooo lucky if you have this wine.
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2014 Rasa Vineyards Grenache Primus Inter Pares Monette's Vineyard
4/11/2024 - learningandenjoying Likes this wine: 92 Points
Side by side with 2014 No Girls Grenache. Both from the Rocks District. This was ready to drink soon after pouring with just a bit over-balance on the fruit that receded with time and was fully in balance the next day. Day 2 the Rasa was a complete wine with all aspects in harmony and drinking "delicious." A person could make Grenache a daily drinker with a wine like this. It was the much superior wine in part because the No Girls went from bad (85) to mediocre (89) whereas the Rasa went from good (90+) to quite nice (92).
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