2009 Sleight of Hand The Illusionist

Community Tasting Note

Ben Christiansen wrote:

Friday, September 13, 2013 - Blue and black fruited, Syrah shows underneath, powerful, dense, just open and needs a bit of time.

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4 comments have been posted

Comment posted by Champagneinhand:

9/13/2013 2:28:00 PM - Ben, did you mean more cellar time or did you mean more air time in a decanter? I think I'm holding my Sleight of Hand wines as many that have opened these are thinking the are fairly average compared to other WA offerings, but I think cellar time will elevate the results of this wine. I'm thinking 2016-2018 as the start of its prime drinking window. Any thoughts about this?
Comment posted by Ben Christiansen:

9/17/2013 4:15:00 PM - I think both cellar time and air time would do it some good. In this case it was that I had just opened the bottle. As the evening went on, across many tasters this was their favorite bottle. Also, the Syrah showed more strongly.
Comment posted by Ben Christiansen:

9/17/2013 4:18:00 PM - Also, these aren't my favorite WA bottles either. I think Buty offers more elegance (and more value), Trust a more deft hand in terms of aromatics (but hardness on the palate), and in what I would call the SoH style -- smokey oak, dark fruit, lush palate, tannic back end -- Andrew Will does him one better. But there more expensive. Just thoughts. These are still very good wines, and the winery is young. We shall see in the coming years if they grow up or not.
Comment posted by Champagneinhand:

9/17/2013 6:06:00 PM - I am so with you on Andrew Will. I think Chris Camrda is one of the unsung winemakers of WA state. Maybe they don't get as much press as others, because they work out of Vashon Island, but always a favorite of mine. I was able to spread the wealth last year to the forum by sharing the wineries offer of closeout prices on '08 Ciel du Cheval and Two Blondes. I also love sorella and Champoux. As far as qpr goes the Discovery vineyard Cab and their cab Franc are really up their. I have a couple of years of Buty Redviva and their Bordeaux Blanc blend from 2010. I do like them a lot too. The one winery that seems to lack in my book is Maison Bleue, and maybe that's just because I had a bad experience with Jaja, feeling it was over hyped. WA state still accounts for a significant part of my cellar, 2nd to the areas of France and Tuscany.