Community Tasting Note

• KPB wrote: 90 points

  April 21, 2020 - This first vintage from Tench was a tough year all around in Napa, between the very cold and rainy spring and then the extreme heat spikes during the summer (to say nothing of the fall fires). Their neighbor, Screaming Eagle, apparently didn't make much wine at all. Tench released a fairly small number of bottles, according to the owner. I would say that the wine is a promising start, but that they need a little more time before they can produce what the site is really capable of.
  
  The wine is in a style I associate with Russ Bevan, who is apparently a partner in the project and presumably either made the wine or at least was an advisor. On opening, you can't help but be struck by the color: very deep purple, but also a bit murky. No filtered stuff here! The nose evolved over a three hour period, and I plan to watch it for at least a full day. At first the dominating impression was warm yeasty brioche with concord grape jelly. With three hours to breath the wine is showing a bit more complexity. The nose is still quite fruit-driven and primary, but now I'm finding nuances that a bit of bottle aging will bring out: toffee, hints of eucalyptus, and a sweet candied cassis lozenge note. Rich with a supple palate, but a bit disjointed right now, showing some sharp edges, and a touch of bitterness on the finish. The wine wants to have a creamy finish but a hint of bitterness intrudes, probably from pips that didn't achieve full maturity (or there could have been some whole clusters in the blend).
  
  I would let your bottles sleep for 5-6 years but then I might drink them; right now this is too young to really enjoy, but in the larger picture I'm guessing that this wine will peak quite young and given the vintage, may not be the most representative of what will be the house style, either. But balance isn't a thing that appears magically, and this particular vintage isn't likely to seem balanced even with age.
  
  After 12 hours: The wine is a little more knit together with 12 hours to breath, can be enjoyed this way (after just 2 or 3, not so much...). I would say that it is very much a Russ Bevan style of wine: even the knit together version is a powerhouse red, very ripe and extracted. It has a slightly creamy texture that came out with more air, and that woody bitterness is less evident. If you love Alpha Omega ERA, you'll think this is even better and in a similar style, and will be shocked by my unfairly low scoring...
  
  If I could offer a bit of advice to the Tench team, I might suggest easing back a little on the concentration and ripeness: to me that slight bitterness suggests a very long extraction, which the material may not really have been up to in 2017.

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4 Comments

• BRR commented:

  4/22/20, 9:18 AM - A well thought out note, KPB, thanks. I bought three of these and held one back from the offsite to drink soon. Perhaps change that plan? Were you able to decant this? If I was to open it, would it be a complete waste, in your opinion? TIA

• AVRwine commented:

  11/14/20, 6:34 PM - You state, " I would say that the wine is a promising start, but that they need a little more time before they can produce what the site is really capable of."
  
  I'm very interested in this comment as Tench has been providing grapes for vineyard designate wines for years. I believe Russ Bevan had a 100 pt Tench in 2014.

• KPB commented:

  11/15/20, 5:07 AM - My understanding is that they replanted most of the vineyard when they decided to create the new winery. As for the 100pt wines by Russ, he has made many that earned that score (mostly on Wine Advocate), and I have tried a few of those, and for me, the ones I tried didn’t deserve such high scores. Russ overextracts, for my palate, and ends up with wines that strike me as clumsy and sometimes outright unappealing. A shame because he gets access to great material. But maybe your taste aligns better with the Wine Advocate Napa person than with mine? If so you might love the Tench wines (I myself am dropping from this list).

• AVRwine commented:

  11/15/20, 8:25 AM - Thanks for your clarification and additional insight.
  
  I'm just not sure the replanting part is accurate. Appreciate the dialogue.
  
  I found this:
  
  Thank you so much for your interest in Tench Vineyards. Since the 1960's we have grown grapes for other wineries. Little did we know that on a July day in 2010, when my husband, Rem, and Russell Bevan met in a small out-of-date hotel bar in New York City we would be able to get to where we are today. That day they hatched a plan to refocus my family’s 61 acre Oakville property, from selling fruit to other wineries, to crafting vineyard designate wines for Bevan Cellars. Since then a large portion of the vineyard has been replanted and Russell and Victoria have made some of the most exciting wines of the past several vintages from our fruit.
  
  The four of us then entered a whole new phase when we decided to not only make Tench wines but to also build a winery facility on the property. Over the course of the last two and a half years, we designed and began construction on the winery and cave where we will crush the Tench wines side by side with the Bevan Cellars wines. We are initially going to focus on special little blocks on the property and eventually add other vineyards. Our production will start out modestly, but our goal is simple: to craft wines that showcase the amazing diversity in Eastern Oakville and eventually other regions as well. There will be no compromises, we will strive for excellence and fulfill our dream.
  
  
  As Rem and I live on the property, please let us know when you are in the Oakville area. Once we have our "certificate of occupancy" this fall, we are excited to show you our vision and winery. I know I speak for Victoria, Russell and Rem when I say “Welcome to the Tench family."
  
  Sincerely,
  Margaret Tench

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