1998 Robert Sinskey Vineyards RSV Vineyard Reserve

Community Tasting Notes (12) Avg Score: 88.8 points

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  12/31/2020 - wchrisw wrote: 87 Points

  Magnum. Opened day prior and let breathe in bottle for a couple hours before recorking and drinking over the following 3 days. Decent, sleek, fruit was fading, some minerality, tasted a bit flat, it didn't evolve over the 3 day span. As a magnum I thought it could have more longevity but then again it is 22 years old. This would have been better 2010-2015. Drink now.

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  4/8/2020 - mindtrip Likes this wine: 96 Points

  Had two Coravin glasses from a magnum with dinner—dry-aged ribeyes and a spicy dirty rice with chipotle, black beans, corn and bacon. It did not disappoint!
  
  Color was a deep garnet. Legs formed and ran slowly. Nose smells like beautiful fruit. On the palate: tamed fruit with blackberry, raspberry, cherry, roasted vegetables and slight tobacco and leather. Absolutely delicious. If you still have one of these bad boys, know that it is drinking fantastically at the moment.

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  7/9/2017 - Alfaro wrote: 93 Points

  Truly a special treat! This wine drank extremely well after a two hour decant, enjoyed by me and six friends, clear ruby red translucent in color, vegetal raspberry notes on the nose, vibrant, red ripe lingering fruit on the pallet, Oohs & Aahh's all around. The reward of patience and risk....

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  7/5/2015 - DNABog wrote: 89 Points

  We had to decant several times but after an hour it was drinking nicely.

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  10/21/2014 - Rollerball wrote:

  I lusted for the ’98 Sinskey RSV but couldn’t afford it back then, and neither could Steve.
  
  Until one lucky day, the tasting room guy felt our pain (or liked our girlfriends) and emerged from storage with two cases for 70% off. Apparently a bottle had broken in the cellar, soaking the cartons pink and affecting a few of the labels as well. I think we paid fifteen bucks a bottle.
  
  And man we enjoyed those '98 Sinskeys for years. This was back when voluptuous Cabs were king. We weren't supposed to like a cooler vintage with hints of anything green. But with its sage and dark juice, the RSV was distinctive and delicious. Pulling one made any occasion special. A picnic before a concert, a long Sunday afternoon, or a dinner party … turned dance party, like they tended to back then. The last bottle probably fell in 2003. And time didn’t stop. Those girlfriends are wives. Jobs are careers. Six kids between us—girls in middle school! And the intimate celebrations continue … even if they end a little earlier.
  
  This October Steve and I flew down to Santa Barbara for the Canary Hotel’s rooftop pool and some live music. Walking home the first night, high from an incredible show, we strolled into Roy’s—a fun gastropub where the kitchen is open late. The place was packed with a warm vibe and good energy. Dramatic oil paintings covered the walls. Roy himself seated us with a wink, two menus, and the wine list.
  
  And on that list was the Sinskey '98 RSV. A wine we hadn’t thought of in years. Such a part of another part of our lives. It took a minute to recollect. Wait—we’ve had that right? Wait—was that that label-stained Sinskey!?
  
  Roy, with his long silver ponytail, emerged from his cellar with the bottle. I let him know we had a story to share. And while he held the Sinskey for service, and we admired its classy, understated, black and gold label, we told Roy about those two special cases, from fifteen years ago.
  
  And then, before any of us could react, THE BOTTLE SLIPPED FROM ROY'S FINGERS, FLIPPED NECK FIRST, AND CRASH! LANDED ONTO THE MARBLE DINNER TABLE. SMACK!—split jagged, right below the shoulder.
  
  Wanna swim in a wine’s bouquet? Try pouring 750mL of it onto a flat surface right in front of your nose! Wow!!! The shock of sage and dark fruit launched me into my early thirties, that Sinskey tasting room, the fragrance of so many many dinners, so long ago, the stereo cranked up, candles and laughter, pulling that favorite bottle from that wine-stained case. And there was Steve across from me, eyes wide, immersed together in yet another unforgettable experience, with the wine as best supporting, yet again. Steve’s arm was bleeding a little from a shard of glass. And we started laughing and shaking our heads, mopping with napkins, and telling Roy oh man we are so much better than OK.
  
  Roy came back with smiling eyes and his very last bottle of ’98 Sinskey RSV. It was drinking with such vibrancy for its age and slighted vintage, with complexity for miles, and with the bouquet of a lifetime.

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