Stumbled across this 17-year-old bottle in a convenience store, and though it doesn't seem like something that was built to age it's held up rather well. Pours very cloudy, dark garnet with bricked edges. Moderately slow legs and a thick, clear meniscus. Nose is hot, dusty, and prune-y. On the palate, a nice bit of acid and youthful cherry fruit expresses over a rich body of prune, chocolate, coffee, vanilla, and baking spices. Finish is long and warm. Classic, big West Coast zin (blended with a few other varietals), but not overly sweet or jammy like I saw mentioned in reviews of later vintages. Maybe it was once, but now it's all high/acidic, low/rich notes and not much in the middle.
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9/6/2014 - professordoktor Likes this wine:
Stumbled across this 17-year-old bottle in a convenience store, and though it doesn't seem like something that was built to age it's held up rather well. Pours very cloudy, dark garnet with bricked edges. Moderately slow legs and a thick, clear meniscus. Nose is hot, dusty, and prune-y. On the palate, a nice bit of acid and youthful cherry fruit expresses over a rich body of prune, chocolate, coffee, vanilla, and baking spices. Finish is long and warm. Classic, big West Coast zin (blended with a few other varietals), but not overly sweet or jammy like I saw mentioned in reviews of later vintages. Maybe it was once, but now it's all high/acidic, low/rich notes and not much in the middle.
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