Community Tasting Note

• jeagle wrote:

  July 3, 2020 - Popped and poured on night one. Refrigerated for night two. I am trying to love this wine and I am a bit stymied as to my resistance. This is my third review over three years. I have the 2016 Elysian, untasted, which may resolve the issue given its rating, but...Okay, the sweetness is offputting, but is that it? I love the texture. I am impressed with the envelopment across the palate. The flavors are not terribly complex but they are nice. I can't dis the finish. I always arrive at the same conclusion. There seems to be a lack of soul. Maybe it is a wine for the computer savvy, mechanical and by the numbers. Maybe it is just that I have been drinking wine seriously for 40 years and I am resistant to change. Whatever, I cannot revel in this bottle. It is good, but in a weird way which I cannot explain.

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20 Comments

• Mark1npt commented:

  7/4/20, 8:58 AM - Nice notes! There is such a thing as too much sweetness, IMO. I think some of these '18s we're experiencing are in much the same boat. Some of these big Cali fruit bombs aren't for everybody. And they certainly go through numerous stages over the years, that are less than optimal for drinking.

• jimyeni commented:

  7/4/20, 10:39 AM - I am curious what wines you typically revel in Jeagle. Your note strikes a chord with me, I really enjoy Carter Cellars wines made by the same winemaker Mike Smith with fruit from many of the same vineyards but haven’t been able to get enthused by Myriad as much as I try and I’m not sure why, there is a contingent of folks that seem to really enjoy both. But this isn’t about comparing to Carter I’m also in the same boat with you that I want to like Myriad wines and somehow they haven’t captured me.

• Franken Berry commented:

  9/22/20, 3:34 AM - Count me amongst the stymied, too. Myriad cabs can be is a bit one dimensional, monolithic in another word. Perhaps the lack of soul you refer to hence the lack of soul you refer to

• Mark1npt commented:

  9/22/20, 10:16 AM - FB....I just had a '13 Myriad Three Twins the other night that left me shaking my head......just not in a great place right now.

• Franken Berry commented:

  9/22/20, 12:45 PM - I have lost patience with the myriad wines for these same reasons. I am tired of trying to guess (pray) when they are in a prime drinking window. personal.

• jeagle commented:

  9/23/20, 9:10 AM - Yeah guys, I think I am done with Mike Smith altogether. One of the most successful in the business, but.....I still have his highly rated Elysian which I should try before deciding.

• Mark1npt commented:

  9/23/20, 2:57 PM - je.....there are others thinking the same. I'm finding myself in a bit of a rotation now between winemakers and different styles. Too many of the wines in my cellar were all beginning to taste the same to me.

• Franken Berry commented:

  9/24/20, 5:29 AM - good conversation. i have had better experience with Becklyn, and Quivet than Myriad. That said, if you ignore the economics of wine making, as a wine consumer, I value a wine that drinks well out of the gate, and consistently drinks well throughout it's lifespan. Wine drinking shouldn't be a metaphysical experience like Schrodinger's Cat in the box (is it alive or dead when you open the box?). I just think that when you push extraction too far you bottle up an unpredictable genie.

• Mark1npt commented:

  9/24/20, 5:48 AM - FB, it is an excellent conversation! And your last statement hits the nail squarely on the head. Finding said Genie, can be a real bitch with these modern Napa cabs. I'm rethinking my cellar and how I have it laid out. Most on here I think have always set up according to location, i.e., US on the left BDX on the right, etc. Might have to rearrange mine....NOW on the left, LATER on the right!

• jeagle commented:

  9/24/20, 7:02 AM - Allow me to insinuate myself into the conversation. I also highly respect a bottle which is close to immediately accessible and maintains its freshness as they say. But is the idea mere whimsy except on those occasions when it occurs naturally? Can wine be made to behave the way we desire it to without losing something important? Doesn't all the variables of a vintage determine how a bottle behaves? Winemakers like to say that they intrude as little as possible from picking to final product. I cannot help but think that the reason I don't appreciate Mike Smith's wines is the result of too much intervention in the process.

• Franken Berry commented:

  9/24/20, 7:54 AM - these are all very valid points. I am speaking from the perspective of the wine consumer. If we are going to spend $100+ a bottle, what should our expectations be? You don't buy a sports car with the idea that it will perform poorly until the engine brakes in, etc. I believe that one of things that has attracted all of us to Napa wines in the beginning, is the fact that they are approachable when young, and have the opportunity to evolve gracefully with time. This seems to be changing in recent vintages. Nothing is more frustrating that choosing to open a special bottle, only to find that it is shut down, unapproachable, or simply disappointing. Granted, there are variables beyond our control, and certainly, there are bad bottles. However, given that wines of this pedigree are an investment of sorts, the consumer has certain expectations of the return on such investment.
  This is one reason why Cellar tracker is so helpful. I understand that the professionals will rate a wine, at birth, based on its potential at some time in the future (typically a wide window). these notes provide more real world, real time assessments of how these investments perform over time

• Mark1npt commented:

  9/24/20, 8:23 AM - je.....There in lies the rub. The economics of winemaking and the importance of high scores has taken over the industry and corrupted the entire winemaking process especially here in the states. Wines are being manipulated seven ways from Sunday now in order to get the scores and get the sales with the American consumer. We really need to develop a different mindset and drink the wines we enjoy now and not worry or think that we can keep them for 20 years as we would a classic Bordeaux. I myself, am beginning to tire of the heavily manipulated wines of modern Napa, but I probably will still buy a few and drink a few from time to time because there are just times where we need them with certain foods, or with certain friends.

• jeagle commented:

  9/24/20, 10:00 AM - FB.....I have a way of complicating everything as nothing seems simple to me. From a consumer's point of view, I can see an expectation of an early drinking window with an unblocked future of graceful development. I just don't see it as realistic. I see it more as an attitude of present generations who view things in terms of instant gratification. I don't mean to be petty, but sports cars are totally manufactured and thus controllable while wine depends on an agricultural commodity and the vagaries attached to it. I fear that a wine manufactured like a sports car will lose its mystery. And true, we purchase financial constructs with a (hopeful) expectation that they will reward us in the future, but is that not like the purchase of wine? The fact remains that some producers make wine that should not be touched for at least 8 years while others are accessible earlier so it would seem that a winemakers intent and process is involved in the traits of the final product. Personally, I am fine waiting a few years, but I am way too old to wait for Bordeaux to mature. Now I totally agree with you about opening a bottle that is not ready. I also fret over the appropriate decant every time. Too little and it will be oak dominant or too tannic, but too much and it will be past its garden spot and perhaps in an awkward window. It irks me when CT notes do not mention how long the decant was and unless I know something about the reviewer, I don't usually do not trust their view on drinkability either. But, in general, I find CT very useful.

• jeagle commented:

  9/24/20, 10:08 AM - Hi Mark. Yep, I believe my return to Napa idea is coming to a close. I plan to continue with a few like Selah, and some French winemakers like Julian Fayard, Melka, or Touquette. But the wines are mostly overpriced and over - manipulated for my taste. Back to Paso Rhones. I see you do enjoy Turley. I was a member back when they were located in Napa. Somewhere, I lost my taste for Zinfandel. I think Syrah simply displaced it. But I purchased a lot of French and Italian wine over the past three years which won't be ready for another couple of years, but it will give me enough variety.

• Franken Berry commented:

  9/24/20, 1:03 PM - I don't disagree with anything you are saying. I am speaking philosophically about the angst of the wine collector. We often buy wine based upon the reviews of those more experienced. In the case of those wines that require considerable aging, it is a challenge to know how much to buy at the time of release, do you continue to buy every vintage for the promise of a future reward, not knowing whether you will like a certain style or vineyard. I am in total agreement that I too cannot decide if I like the winemaking style of the Myriad brand, although I do enjoy other wines made by Mike Smith including Carter, Quivet, Becklyn and (usually) Scarlett.

• Mark1npt commented:

  9/24/20, 4:15 PM - je.....I tasted with Joe Blanton and his '17 Selah a couple of weeks ago. It has almost an identical nose to the '16 which we drank side by side with the '17. However, the '17 is a tad lighter in fruit with a nice herbs d'Provence quality to it. I liked it solely because it was slightly different than the first 3 vintages which all basically taste about the same. This particular '17 is very well made and one of the few I've had that I will order a few more of. I have tons of '18s coming from Myriad and Carter and a few Quivet. Not sure how many if any of those I'll be buying going forward. I feel like my palate wants to head off in to a new direction lately.

• Mark1npt commented:

  9/24/20, 4:19 PM - FB.....I don't disagree with anything either of you are throwing out there. All good points as far as I'm concerned. My personal appetite for these big Cali wines is waning, and my pocket book is too as I near retirement. I have a lot of disdain for Napa pricing and it's ever increasing toll it's taking on my IRA! I'll have plenty of good wines tucked away for the next 20 years but will be searching out more simply 'good' wines at 'good' prices going forward, I think. Cheers to both of you for a great conversation.

• jeagle commented:

  9/25/20, 7:28 AM - I do get it. The angst of the wine buyer is quite appropriate. I typically would drink Napa Cabs at 7 or 8 years from the vintage. But now that I have decided to wade into many of the newly arrived winemakers, I have to taste earlier to see if I approve of the style, especially given the price of their product. Mike Smith makes so much wine, I decided to go with his own label. I totally disliked his Syrahs in a decent vintage and am now pretty much unhappy with the Cabs. I did try a Scarlett Reserve which I found too close to the Myriad style. I have not ventured farther than that. In general, I have always purchased from producers who provide a consistent brand. I would typically taste before purchasing, but I trusted their loyalty to the style. Throughout the 80's and 90's, I was predominantly a Napa Cab and Sonoma Pinot and Zin drinker. In 2006 I discovered Rhone wines from Paso Robles and became enamored. Names like Saxum, Torrn, L'Aventure, and Clos Solene consistently produce gorgeous wines, especially during this spate of amazing vintages. The most angst I now experience is with the Napa product due to my present inexperience with it. I will say, the best bottle I have experienced is the 2014 Outpost True Vyd. so I believe Thomas Rivers Brown is a keeper for me. It is one of life's mysteries that Mike Smith tutored under him.

• jeagle commented:

  9/25/20, 7:35 AM - Mark, thanks for the info on the Selah 2017. Given the fires and the general quality of the vintage, I decided to go heavy on the 2018's instead. I even bought a bit of Myriad, I think I thought I'd try the Georges. I really seesaw on Myriad, kind of like a jilted lover, I can't seem to just cut it off, but I really should. I am at an age where I have to think about stopping the purchases altogether. I don't want to leave my wife with over a thousand bottles to deal with. Now I just have to break the buying addiction.

• Mark1npt commented:

  9/25/20, 5:34 PM - je....you are too funny! I laugh at my patients who are 78 yo and have 20,000 bottles in there cellar and keep buying! How f'd is that? Like they'll ever have a snowball's chance of drinking even a small fraction of those before they're gone........I am going to slow down, but won't stop buying altogether. I will backfill with wines/vintages I like and keep the cellar topped off but wil certainly stop the large purchases.

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