5/12/2011 - Ben Frost wrote:

Everything I like about a good California syrah. Definitely blackberry and game on the palate. It is a touch hot at this point and a little tannic, but this is extremely young at this point...

4/26/2011 - Ben Frost wrote:

I do really like the flavor profile of this. Very cool climate flavor profile with lots of black pepper along with plum and black cherry. I would not call this elegant at all though and the alcohol is pretty prominent as many others have noted.

4/24/2011 - Ben Frost wrote:

Call this a learning experience....What was once an incredible wine with nice acidity and lime/mineral notes has softened to be still very good, but not what it was 2 years ago...

2/27/2011 - Ben Frost wrote:

Nice nose of peach, but this winery is very watery on the palate and finish with no depth, richness or complexity..Not at all sure what others see in this.

2/23/2011 - Ben Frost wrote:

To me, this is exactly what a good Zinfandel should be. Delicious berry flavors on the palate along with well integrated oak. This is all in perfect balance. No jamminess or alcohol making an appearance. It does need an hour or two decant to open.

2/18/2011 - Ben Frost wrote:

Cherry, dusty earth and some funk on the nose. On the palate this is very tannic, but some tart cherry flavors are still shining through. I think this has a long life ahead of it and may be a lot better in 2-3 years. Tough wine to really evaluate right now.

2/4/2011 - Ben Frost wrote:

I do love the blackberry, licorice, and earthy notes on this wine. I do find myself drinking it entirely too quickly. The major negative is the alcohol burn on the finish which is preventing me from giving it a 90+.

1/26/2011 - Ben Frost wrote:

This is absolutely delicious. Without being sweet or cloying, this is as close to tasting like a berry pie as I've ever had in a wine. It is also extremely well balanced. My only complaint (which is a consistent complaint about zins) is that it is pretty one dimensional, but that dimension is delicious!

1/25/2011 - Ben Frost wrote:

Drank on 1/22. This bottle absolutely shined with wagyu beef at Prospect Restaurant in San Francicso. Maybe one of my better wine experiences ever!

12/19/2010 - Ben Frost wrote:

Pretty disappointed in this. Trader Joe's had me going with their claim of a $45 value for $9.99. I realize that was the original price and it is now $9.99 because that is what is it worth. Having said that, this is good everyday drinking and would be great for a party wine. Pleasing typical Zinfandel flavor profile, but with no complexity and a very weak midpalate and finish.

12/17/2010 - Ben Frost wrote:

Definitely enjoyed this, but maybe not completely my style of wine. Very much a Bordeaux blend with plenty of California fruit. Halfway old world and new world in style. Medium body and fairly well balanced, but maybe just a touch of heat. Had this previously without a decant and found this needs at least a couple of hours to open up.

11/21/2010 - Ben Frost wrote:

Great bottle of wine....Nice vivid wild berry flavors with a touch of oak and herbal notes. Long finish...

9/1/2010 - Ben Frost wrote:

Two words on this wine: balance and finish. Great aromatics and such a silky finish. This isn't nearly as heavy as previous Walker Vine Hills, but it's so much better. The same flavor profiles are there (blueberry, meat), but it is so much more elegant and balanced. I bet in a couple of years this will put on more weight and be even better.

8/27/2010 - Ben Frost wrote:

Still great, but slightly disappointed in comparison to my first experience. Didn't seem as expressive. Don't know if it was heightened expectations or slight variation in bottle.

8/10/2010 - Ben Frost wrote:

I'm not going to score this because my reaction could be due to the way it was stored. Came off as very one dimensional and uninteresting though given the price.

7/27/2010 - Ben Frost wrote:

Really enjoyed this. Nice mix of blueberry/blackberry, game, and pepper on the nose and palate. I found it to be a pretty typical new world syrah flavor profile. Some of the comments on here had me suspecting a more savory flavor profile, but I found the pepper/meatiness of this to be a bit understated. This isn't jammy at all, but the fruit did shine through.

7/24/2010 - Ben Frost wrote:

I enjoyed this. Does need a good decant. Roasted meat and pepper on the nose and palate. A dark cherry component comes out with a longer decant. This definitely has more old world components than new so I'm guessing someone expecting a new world wine will not like it.

7/20/2010 - Ben Frost wrote:

Very impressed with this....Nice dark fruit, tar, and earthiness. If I had tasted this blind I might have thought new world syrah which might turn off some.

6/20/2010 - Ben Frost wrote:

I decided to open this very special bottle on Father's Day. Obsidian is the perfect name for this. Very powerful wine with black graphite, smoked meat, and blackberry on the nose and palate. The smokiness of the wine lingers in a very nice way. I don't know if I have ever had a wine that is as powerful, but yet in perfect balance. I could have drank the whole bottle by myself. Can't wait to see how this evolves.

6/2/2010 - Ben Frost wrote:

Really like this. Would probably seek it out for $25, but for $50 it's a little much.

6/2/2010 - Ben Frost wrote:

This is really interesting. Nice aromatics of strawberry and maybe a little bread/yeasty component.

6/2/2010 - Ben Frost wrote:

Really nice lemon and lime on the nose and palate along with minerality. Maybe just a bit of dirty socks that brought down my score a bit.

5/30/2010 - Ben Frost wrote:

I seem to be agreeing with the vast majority of reviewers on this. The first hour was the best with alluring tobacco, earthy,herbal notes and meatiness on the nose and palate along with a touch of cherry. I found it to be very complex. A lot of that blew off within an hour or two and the wine gained some weight on the mouthfeel and gained just a touch of fruit. This was probably a 93 for me at first and then more like a 89-90 as time went by. I don't really think this is a matter of aging potential as the tannins were fairly tight at first. I wonder if some of this isn't based on the oak influence and it blows off after a decant.

5/14/2010 - Ben Frost wrote:

Tastes like a wine flavored oak drink to me. The predominant flavor is caramel/vanilla from the oak treatment. Fruit is there, but takes a backseat causing my overall impression of the wine to be that it tastes very fake. Funny thing is I tried a different vintage of this wine 7-8 years ago before drinking a lot of wine and I remember liking it a lot probably because that oak/vanilla taste was appealing to me at the time. Not that it is wrong to like this, but just not what I enjoy about wine today.

4/26/2010 - Ben Frost wrote:

Still over-oaked for my palate, but I can see others rating it higher. There is a nice wild berry flavor, but it's largely covered up by the oak influence.

4/15/2010 - Ben Frost wrote:

I really enjoyed this. Cherry cola on the nose and palate along with a citrus/floral component. Just a touch of earthy funk as well. I wound up decanting this for several hours and did not get obtrusive oak as others have noted. This is fairly tannic at this point, but it's not bitter or unpleasant. I assume this will get even better in several years. This is not a full bodied powerful wine and with some age it will likely veer more towards elegance.

4/10/2010 - Ben Frost wrote:

This never came together for me after a long decant. Candied blueberry and blackberry on the nose and palate along with somewhat of a milky chocolate or even coconut component. At first the tannins were a bit bitter and rough, but the tannins smoothed out over time. The problem is the wine became less integrated with alcohol making more of an appearance.

The next day after being open for 14 hours this became a hot alcoholic mess. I wanted to like this, but just don't see it.

4/7/2010 - Ben Frost wrote:

I really enjoy this wine. Love the purity of the blackberry and black cherry that come through on the palate as well as a bit of black tar. I typically decant this wine for at least two hours and find that the wine is much more balanced upon doing so. If you pop and pour oak and alcohol dominate, but after a good decant they take a back seat to the fruit and more acidity. This isn't a wine for people who are after elegance, complexity and balance, but I don't know if you'd drink an Aussie Shiraz expecting that.....For the $15 I paid for this I consider it a pretty good QPR.

3/28/2010 - Ben Frost wrote:

Definitely enjoyed this. Very floral on the nose. On the palate maintains the floral component along with a gush of cherry juice. Tannins are very minimal. I found myself wanting more body, but no doubt this is expertly made.

3/17/2010 - Ben Frost wrote:

This was shockingly very good. Has the telltale sign of Cab Franc as part of the blend on the nose and palate with some green pepper/vegetal characteristics along with currant and red fruit. Believe it or not it needed a bit of time for the tannins to soften. I think this would age quite well. Very well made with nice oak integration.

3/15/2010 - Ben Frost wrote:

Definitely represents California syrah well. Very dark purple color. Great meaty/gamey profile on the nose along with blueberry and just a touch of olive. This carries through on the palate. This wine is very well made and fairly complex. The only thing that prevents me from giving it 90+ is that the finish was rather short. Now for $9.99 at Trader Joe's this is an unbelievable QPR.

3/7/2010 - Ben Frost wrote:

This is what I expect from a very good inexpensive zinfandel. Nice black raspberry on the nose that carries through on the palate along with a bit of milk chocolate. A bit too sweet for sure, but also very delicious. What I particularly liked about it was despite the 15.1% alcohol it wasn't hot and the oak was perfectly implemented. Only thing preventing me from giving it a much higher score is a lack of complexity....I didn't get the peppery notes that others have cited. I got this for 9.99 at Costco and for that price this is a huge QPR.

3/5/2010 - Ben Frost wrote:

I am disappointed. Seems over-oaked and a bit disjointed to me. I do not think this will evolve either. I have two more bottles so I will see if there is some bottle variation. I realize now that my initial 80 score was probably too harsh, but I still feel the overwheling flavor on this wine is oak which is disappointing.

3/1/2010 - Ben Frost wrote:

Pretty disappointed. Although the jammy black fruit is appealing this is just too off balance for me. The alcohol did not allow the fruit to shine. I did get a bit of licorice on the nose as well.

2/25/2010 - Ben Frost wrote:

I decanted for a good five hours and then drank the last glass about 2 1/2 hours later. Classic Cab Franc with vegetal and savory characteristics. Fruit is definitely very much in the background on this one which I assume a lot of people may not like, but I found the overall flavor profile interesting. What I didn't like is that even after 7 1/2 hours of being open the tannins were still very bitter probably because of the fruit being in the background. I assume that this will smooth out over time. I'm not convinced that this will be special enough for my palate to warrant the cellar space for five+ years of waiting though.

1/29/2010 - Ben Frost wrote:

I enjoyed this much more than previous bottle. Currant, black cherry, licorice and some herbal notes on the nose and palate.. Maybe slight cocoa. Very smooth. Drinking really right now.

1/23/2010 - Ben Frost wrote:

Nose was definitely very pretty with blackberry and floral notes. This continued through the palate. In need of a long decant. Oak (and accompanying vanilla) disappeared mostly with a good decant. This needs come bottle age to show its best. Tannins are not obtrusive, but I'm sure some age on this will reveal more complexity.

1/1/2010 - Ben Frost wrote:

The last reviewer nailed this. I really enjoyed this. Makes me want to buy Pride more consistently.

12/18/2009 - Ben Frost wrote:

For me this had an annoying alcohol burn to it that I couldn't get past. Appealing only for its sweetness and jamminess, but not well balanced.

12/6/2009 - Ben Frost wrote:

The last reviewer nailed this I think for the most part. Spice box and very nice pure fruit flavors without being jammy. (blueberry,strawberry, and rhubarb) This wine is impeccably balanced and lower in alcohol that what you'll see from most new world wines. (13.5%) This started out a bit underwhelming for me, but I appreciated its balance and purity of fruit as the night wore on.

11/29/2009 - Ben Frost wrote:

Honestly a bit disappointed. Seemed very closed up. Has very good concentration and there was a bit of cherry and earthiness showing through, but too tannic at this point for me.

11/20/2009 - Ben Frost wrote:

Substantial roasted meat on the nose and palate. Blackberry, coffee notes and pepper also mixed in. I found this to be pretty tannic at this point and I think it would be much much better in a year or two. Definitely a very big wine. Probably would be great with a heavy meat dish or steak.

10/3/2009 - Ben Frost wrote:

Very well balanced for 15.6% alcohol Black pepper, earthy, and dark purple fruit on the palate. Has a silkiness to it that is nice. Surprisingly very little tannins. I definitely enjoyed this, but I'm not wowed by it.

9/17/2009 - Ben Frost wrote:

Wow, I loved this. Tropical fruit notes, spice (maybe nutmeg), a little herbal quality, and some vanilla with the oak influence. For my taste this wasn't overoaked, but some may disagree. Maybe a little hot too, but not really for my palate. I am perhaps influenced by this being $11 at Trader Joes. I'll have to get much more.

9/15/2009 - Ben Frost wrote:

I now know the first couple of bottles I had of this were flawed. Dark berry and currant with pepper notes and some earthiness. Very well made balanced wine.

9/11/2009 - Ben Frost wrote:

Definitely reminded me of a Cotes Du Rhone. Pretty rustic, not at all fruity and very balanced. Dark fruit with slight earthy notes. I found it to be very simplistic, but also enjoyable. The tannins were pretty fine and will smooth out in a year or two, but I don't think it would gain any complexity. I didn't find it to be hot at all.

8/30/2009 - Ben Frost wrote:

Blackberry fruit and bit of gaminess, a touch of caramel and vanilla oak. I'd probably think it was a Zin blind. Definitely a little hot and veering towards being overly sweet. There are some problems with this wine and its a bit simplistic, but for $6 at Trader Joes I'm ecstatic.

8/14/2009 - Ben Frost wrote:

This was a very interesting wine experience. When first poured it was extremely dark and tannic and very mouthfilling, but it showed very little complexity. I wasn't able to identify too many flavors, but it was powerful. After 2-3 hours of decanting it changed dramatically to reveal strawberry jam, a bit of licorice, and a herbal quality and it was actually a bit restrained. I highly recommend a long decant on this one. If you were to blind taste this wine upon opening and compare it to 2-3 hours in the glass you'd never identify it as the same wine.

8/11/2009 - Ben Frost wrote:

Drank two bottles. These bottles didn't show as well as previously. Not sure why.

8/11/2009 - Ben Frost wrote:

I was a little disappointed in this. I had this seven months ago and it seemed to show a lot better then. Still tasty, but it is losing some of the fruit that made it so compelling previously. I have one more that I intend to drink soon. For my palate, not one that I want to hold onto.