Important Update From the Founder

2015 Meritage & Bordeaux Reds

Canoehead Central

Tasted December 12, 2021 - December 13, 2021 by Canoehead with 183 views

Introduction

Double blind tasting of premium Meritage and Bordeaux reds from 2015 vintage. Opportunity for a small group of CTers (fully vaxxed) from Vancouver Island to meet, share and assess this specific vintage but broad array of wines. All wines were double decanted and aired for at least one hour. Wines were not revealed until all five flights of two bottles each were assessed and tasters shared their impressions and voted for favourite and least favourite.

Flight 1 - First round (2 notes)

none of the tasters knew which wines would be served in any particular order. Its always tough for a first wine to be assessed adequately because nothing came before it (save for a palate cleansing bubbly). And what do we have right out of the gate? Dominus, the iconic Napa blend and priciest wine. Not fair. This private school toddler is just getting on its feet and has green, herbaceaous and tannic assaults on the nose and palate. The SHL is also way too young but it came off sweeter and riper compared to the Dominus.

Red

2015 Dominus Estate USA, California, Napa Valley

Still so very young. Decanted 1.5 hours and poured back in bottle for blind 2015 Meritage/Bordeaux tasting. Although quite aromatic upon initial opening and pouring into decanter, this wine definitely went backwards with a vegetal and herbaceous layer in the forefront and the dark red primary fruits muted in the background. Alcohol was noticable. Medium finish. All the elements are here but not seamless and integrated as of yet.

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Red

2015 Château Smith Haut Lafitte France, Bordeaux, Graves, Pessac-Léognan

Double decanted for minimum one hour. Bright dark garnet with crimson rim. Ripe red and black fruit with a vanilla spice note. On the palate the fruits were quite primary and the oak was upfront. Medium plus finish. Loads of potential here but not a wow wine at blind tasting of 2015 premium Meritage and Bordeaux reds. Revisit in 2-3 years.

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Flight 2 - Second round (2 notes)

Now we're getting going and The Legacy which had lots of air was still discernible. Classic sage nose of the Okanagan. Old world meets new. Then with the second wine we get the funkiest nose of the bunch (Marky Mark anyone?). Gotta be Italian, right? Can't be new world, can't be French? The Pontet Canet is so unique and contradictory. Jeff Goldblum as Frankenstein?

Red

2015 Poplar Grove Winery The Legacy Canada, British Columbia, Okanagan Valley, Okanagan Valley VQA

Double decanted with approx 4 hours in the decanter. Silky purple with garnet rim. Pronounced nose of savoury dark red fruit and some sage and mint. A bit of alcohol on the nose. Medium plus body with transitioning fruit fighting it out with elements of olive and tobacco. Grippy tannins. Medium plus finish. This is built for some aging. A couple of CTers at the blind tasting indicated this as their least favourite of the ten Meritage/Bordeaux being assessed.

3 people found this helpful Comment

Red

2015 Château Pontet-Canet France, Bordeaux, Médoc, Pauillac

Double decanted for 1.5 hours. Dark core of purple with crimson rim. Bit of a funky nose - not corked but more like dusty Brett. On this point alone many guessed in the blind tasting this was Italian with that aroma. Fruit was leaning to tertiary with a port profile of steeped, macerated fruit. Long finish. Good quality. Very good structure. Open next bottle in 2023.

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Flight 3 - Third round (2 notes)

Alright we're getting in the groove. Residual alcohol is taking hold. Bam! the first wine has a very pronounced nose of sweet, macerated fruit. Balsamic on the palate, even bubble gum is perceived. Has a dusty, stony note. Gotta be WA State. Second wine is even more pronouncend on the nose and very rich on the palate. Consensus lovers thinks its gotta be the Blind Creek beauty. Wrong, its the valley cohort Signature smack dab in its drinking window. Well done.

Red

2015 Long Shadows Wineries Pirouette USA, Washington, Columbia Valley

Double decanted for 1 hour. Deep garnet with crimson rim. Pronounced nose of dried dark red fruits and savoury notes of tobacco and mocha. One CTer mentioned bubble gum. On the palate this was quite rich and concentrated with balsamic notes. Alcohol burn on the finish but super fine tannins. Possibly in its prime time to drink so I'd say consume in next 2-3 years.

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Red

2015 Clos du Soleil Signature Canada, British Columbia, British Columbia VQA

Double decanted for 1.5 hours. Purple-black with iron rim. Extracted nose of sweet, dried red and black fruits, cedar chest and baking spice. Stewed mission fig on the tongue with cassis, black cherry, rum cake, espresso and dried herbs. Acid is dropping out a bit. A touch too sweet on the finish. Fine tannins and alcohol in check. Drink up. Many thought this was the Blind Creek Consensus from the same valley region.

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Flight 4 - Fourth round (2 notes)

This flight starts with the most aromatic wine yet. Massive bouquet of rich tertiary dark red fruits and sweet spice. Gotta be Napa, gotta be Dominus. So much complexity in the palate. Well integrated tannins. Later revealed to be the Consensus. Mind blown. Ends up being the majority's top wine of the tasting. Second wine has a hard act to follow. Much more old world in style - more savoury than fruit forward. Some vegetal and herbaceous but in a good way, a very good way. Turns out it is the Arcanum and that starts to make sene give the Cab Franc dominance of that blend.

Red

2015 Blind Creek Collective Consensus Canada, British Columbia, Similkameen Valley, Similkameen Valley VQA

Double decanted for 1 hour. Silky core of black with crimson rim. Massive nose of ripe, aging black fruit. Boozy cherries and fig compote. Great mouthfeel with depths of fruit and savoury components. Fruitcake and mocha. Well integrated and tied for longest finish of the ten wines. Rich but refreshing. Many of us thought this was the Dominus. Five out of seven picked this wine as their favourite of the blind tasting. Blind Creek Consensus is the Canadian wine lover's equivalent of the Avro Arrow. So much promise and potential but no courage (political or otherwise) to sustain the production and brand.

3 people found this helpful Comments (2)

Red

2015 Tenuta di Arceno Arcanum Toscana IGT Italy, Tuscany, Toscana IGT

Double decanted for approx one hour. Dark garnet with ruby rim. Savoury nose at first with darker red and black fruits in the background. Black cherry and black licorice were predominant on the palate. A little young and crunchy. Acid is present and keeping grippy tannins and alcohol in check. Medium plus finish. Hold off another year or two.

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Flight 5 - Fifth round (2 notes)

Last round, the collective palates are getting a bit tired. First wine is very promising at first on the nose. Ripe, sweet red fruits and vanilla. After a none sniff, maybe too much vanilla. Yup, this is an over-oaked blend that is trying to be a Napa (read: Caymus) cab-dominant blend. Jammy with a short finish. It is the Compendium from Mission Hill. Salvation awaits in the last glass. Pronounced nose of numerous elements - clean, ripe fruits - dark red and black - secondary and tertiary notes of coffee, dutch liquorice, mushroom. I could just smell this wine for hours. Tasting it takes the wine up a couple of more notches of quality. Full-bodied but lithe and elegant. Still youthful but well balanced. Seamless acidity and no persistent alcohol. Super long finish. Later revealed to be the Quintessa. My WOTN.

Red

2015 Mission Hill Compendium Canada, British Columbia, Okanagan Valley, Okanagan Valley VQA

Double decanted for one hour. Bright, dark garnet. Massive nose of ripe dark red fruits but on the palate this was all oak and vanilla with very sweet fruit. Short finish. Lacks complexity. This is a BC Meritage striving to be a sweet, oaky Napa Cab (read: Caymus).

2 people found this helpful Comments (1)

Red

2015 Quintessa USA, California, Napa Valley, Rutherford

Double decanted for minimum one hour. Bright crimson black. Pronounce nose. Sweet, ripe blue and black fruits. blueberry pie, black currant jelly, roasted figs. Absolute delight on the palate, layers and layers of fruits in balance with refreshing acidity and fine-grained tannins. Great concentration and complexity. Tied for longest finish across ten wines. Great structure for aging but I wouldn't have the discipline keeping my hands off this one. My WOTN.

4 people found this helpful Comments (1)

Closing

There really wasn't a bad bottle in the bunch except for a BC red that was trying to be a sweet oaked Napa blend (Compendium). And the Dominus for its price was not showing well and in fact was the least favourite wines of two of the tasters. Five of seven tasters chose the Consensus from the now defunct Blind Creek Collective label as their favourite wine of the tasting. The other two preferred the Quintessa. Also least favourite were Poplar Grove's Legacy and Smith Haut Lafitte. Some of these were obviously still quite young but this tasting was not about potential rather it was about how stunning is the wine now in my glass.

2015 Meritage & Bordeaux Reds

Canoehead Central

Introduction

Flight 1 - First round (2 notes)

Flight 2 - Second round (2 notes)

Flight 3 - Third round (2 notes)

Flight 4 - Fourth round (2 notes)

Flight 5 - Fifth round (2 notes)

Closing

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