Community Tasting Notes 5

• jeff nowak wrote: 90 points

  March 17, 2012 - another excellent showing for this obscure wine. aging gracefully and apparently at a nice drinking plateau. not decanted. green note observed but very mild and complimentart. nice.

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• jeff nowak wrote: 90 points

  February 24, 2010 - took my own advice and decanted this. then after about 2 hours, it really took on weight and opend nicely. a very pleasant surprise. floral, great minerality, whole cluster-like fruit that stopped short of being green. interesting wine.

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• jeff nowak wrote: 85 points

  September 9, 2008 - this wine always needs at least an hour of air; looks like i'm the only person on CT! that owns any. tonight, i couldn't get past the fact that i view this varietal as a blending grape, and not a stand alone. plums, and other mixed dark fruits, e.g. blackberry notes. it failed to hold my attention, although the fruit was pretty good.

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• jeff nowak wrote: 89 points

  September 2, 2007 - 13% alcohol. maybe a bit too low, and could have been picked riper? my only real complaint. the wine has an expressive nose and solid fruit, it lacks complexity and a compelling finish. left overnight in the cellar and in the decanter, it displayed virtually no oxidation, and gained some smoothness in the mouthfeel, and a more feminine personality. the owner/winemaker always said she made her wines to age, and this one is doing nicely. an unsung winery that i have always enjoyed.

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• jeff nowak wrote: 88 points

  February 15, 2006 - 13% alcohol. santa clara valley.
  
  disclaimer: sarah's vineyards, in gilroy, ca, is the very first winery i ever visited in my life. the owner, marilyn sarah clark, has subsequently sold the winery. marilyn looked like angie dickenson, and dressed like stevie nicks. always in white. she was a hoot, and a delightful host. the vineyards produced chard, merlot, pinot, and cab franc. not long ago, a friend gave me an 83 sarah's john radike merlot that was truly killer. a great source of these wines has always been the wine shop and brassiere in san diego. my current female doberman is named sarah. winespectator has occasionaly reviewed the wines, always in the low to mid eighties, which makes me think i'm on to something. the 96 chard is still drinking beautifully. the first time i visited, i didn't know exactly where to go. i wandered into the winery, and caught the cellar rat getting a bj from his girl friend. later, marilyn's white peacock tried to take a nip out of me. eventually, we made our way to the deck, and enjoyed the entire portfolio. THIS is what makes sharing and enjoying wine so special. great memories.
  
  oh, yeah. the TN.
  
  when i first opened it, the wine was dull, thin in the mid palate, and basically uninteresting. marilyn always said that her wines were vinified for aging, so i decided not to give up on this bottle. with air over the last 90 minutes, it has bloomed. nobody is going to have an epiphany while drinking this wine, but it is very enjoyable. still some tannin to resolve, but well within it's drinking window. very good balance, and a total package. the downfall is the fruit, which just doesn't deliver enough structure to grab your long term attention. a fun drink if you have it.
  

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Wine Definition

• Vintage 1998
• Type Red
• Producer Sarah's Vineyard
• Varietal Cabernet Franc
• Designation n/a
• Vineyard n/a
• Country USA
• Region California
• SubRegion Central Coast
• Appellation Santa Clara County

Community Holdings

• Pending Delivery 0 (0%)
• In Cellars 27 (87%)
• Consumed 4 (13%)

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