August 1, 2019 - Black as the night in color. no bricking anywhere. Solid purple to black to the core. Bay leaf, rosemary, blackberry cobbler, campfire smoke on the nose. Tart blackberry & cassis fruit on the palate. Medium body. Medium + tannins, surprising low alcohol heat for such a big wine. Light on it's feet with elevated acidity. If stored well, could last another 5 years, but why wait. Drinking nicely now.
April 7, 2016 - An opaque and youthful purple. The nose is deep, rich and sweet.... almost like a Coke or maybe a blackberry Coke. Jammy richness hits the palate with blackberry, brown sugar, molasses and .... Coke. The tannins are round, but still lively and will undoubtedly carry this wine forward for a number of years. A pleasant enough wine, but very linear and more of a fruit bomb than I’d care for. Some slight sediment. 14.7% alc. With a Shack attack of beef burgers. Recommended with reservations.
January 19, 2014 - Notes from last part of a bottle opened yesterday. Pitch dark, inky violet color. Fully opaque with heavily stained legs. Surprisingly, only light sediment. Interesting wine that I would put somewhere between Petit Sirah and Zinfandel, but also unlike any blend I've ever had of the two. There is the lifted floral notes of PS, but the brambly blackberry of Zin, too. Tannins would also fall somewhere in between those two varietals with more prominent acidity than either. With 7 years on it, the structure is playing in smooth harmony. I think the winemaker is really getting the most of out of this grape and has produced a really good example. If more were available of this vintage, I'd happily buy. 5+11+16+8 = 90
November 20, 2011 - Johnny brought this into S&W with Amy.
So dark and fat. Jet black color - completely opaque even at the rim.
Savory blackberry, soy, Hoisen, duck and other game. Thick - uber coating.
Slowly crawls back down the glass after each swirl.
Great acidity keeping any sort of cloying action at bay.
Awesome super unique wine. I'd recommend this to ANY wine geek. Only one other vineyard produces this varietal.
December 17, 2010 - Consistent with last tasting note. In addition, rather shortish finish and short on tannins.
August 1, 2010 - Blackish Red. Black fruits, mint, breakfast sausage, and meat. Nice feel and weight, but lacking balance. Loads of fruit, but lacking depth and continuity. A short easy finish. This was a fun wine to try.
March 13, 2010 - Interesting offering. A very dark, dense purple in the glass. Deep and brooding on the nose, with violets and a flint like blue fruit. Was very tight upon opening but only took about 20 minutes to strut it's stuff. Opened nicely revealing more violets and deep blue fruit, very smooth and round on the palate. Similar to a Negrette I have had in the past, without the biting tannins.
February 23, 2010 - Deep garnet, opaque like condensed grape juice. Nice floral aroma with berries. Palate reminded me of red cherries that were not quite ready to eat. Not heavy like it appears. Very mild tannins and very good acidity. It was almost refreshing like a white wine. No oak presence (which I prefer). Long sour cherry finish. This was an experiment; glad I tried it. Have one more that will open in a couple of years.