1995 Beringer Vineyards Viognier Hudson Ranch Napa Valley

Community Tasting Notes (1) Avg Score: 93 points

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  11/3/2020 - forceberry wrote: 93 Points

  14,6% alcohol.
  
  Concentrated, quite deep and surprisingly youthful neon-green color. Intense, sweet-toned and somewhat concentrated nose of orchard flowers and rose petals, peach, some poached pear, light waxy tones, a little bit of exotic spice, a hint of honeyed richness and a touch of crème à la vanille. The wine is broad, quite oily and somewhat warm on the palate with a full body and a taste that is remarkably youthful for a 25-yo Viognier. Vibrant flavors of exotic spices and spicy red apple, sweet notes of wizened apricots, some honeyed tones, a little bit of beeswax, light floral notes of apple blossom and other orchard flowers, a hint of dried golden apple and a touch of browned butter. However, with some air, the wine starts to slowly fall apart and develops some metallic undertones. The moderately high acidity feels quite high for a Viognier, keeping the wine very nicely in balance. The finish is developed, complex and remarkably youthful for the age with lengthy flavors of wizened apples, some floral spice, light nutty notes of chopped almonds, a little bit of buttery richness, an evolved hint of beeswax and a touch of dried apricots.
  
  I had no expectations for a 25-yo Cali Viognier - well, perhaps I expected it to be completely dead, if something - but instead this wine turned out to be the most youthful wine in our Beringer 2016-1982 vertical! The wine is unbelievably youthful for its age, down to its vibrant, neon-green color! You can taste it has some age on it - and the wine actually falls apart relatively quickly, becoming quite dull, lifeless and metallic in an hour or two - but upon opening the wine feels like it has just emerged from a time capsule. Furthermore, the wine certainly shows the oiliness and rich apricot flavors typical of the variety, but at the same time it retains surprisingly bright and fresh streak of acidity that makes the wine feel surprisingly precise and structured for a Viognier. An exceptional Napa white and among the best wines in our tasting. Based on how remarkably good the 1995 wines were, I guess this must've been a wonderful vintage for Beringer whites.

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