Decanted for two hours. Ripe blueberries, over ripe black cherries, rose petals, dust, dirt, cedar and vanilla on the nose. The oak aromas are pretty subtle, though with everything else, the intensity of aromas comes out to medium +. The palate adds white pepper, orange peel, RED cherries and strawberry jam, as well as something resembling garrigue. It starts with a pop of blue and red fruit, then gets dusty and earthy. Finishes with a hint of plastic.
Medium bodied with medium + acid (when's the last time you had a Carignan with this much acid?) and medium tannin. Drink this now. Not going to improve with further aging; though I don't think it will decline for a while either. Made a great pairing with a chile relleno with chicken on cinco de Mayo.
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PnP. Nose of wet sawdust and white pepper. Vibrant, rustic red fruit with tart acidity, tannins, and dried tarragon and sage. Resolved tannins, loads of earth, tart red fruit, and dusty earth, finishing medium long. This is well put-together and balanced. I'm sure it will hold but I like it now.
Beautiful color that I won’t attempt to describe. Solid nose of red and purple fruit that followed on the palate. The red fruit had richness to it, but there was lifting acid that prevented it from tasting heavy. Right down the middle medium bodied is how I would describe it. This wine is like a great pair of loafers, you can dress it up (dinner party quality) or dress it down (Friday night pizza and movie). Highly recommend. Needs decanting due to sediment.
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14% abv. Medium ruby red, very aromatic. On the palate, red cherry, raspberry preserves, rose petals. Impeccably balanced, great mouthfeel, depth and length. Terrific now and will no doubt improve over the next 6-8+ years. I love the way Cody coaxes red fruited deliciousness out of these old CC Carignan vines. Simply delicious.
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3rd day since opening. Layers of crunchy red fruit with a kiss of Mourvèdre funk. Still throwing some significant tannin so no rush to open but damn this is delicious!
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Just to start out, Evangelho is my personal favorite of the old vines sites in California. There’s something about the wines that come from it that reaches deep into what’s left of my soul. Normally I find a sappy depth to the wines, but this one was different. This one showed a brightness, a lift that made me sit up and take notice rather than just revel in the texture. It still showed all the red fruit character, but it was accented by citrus zest. This made it more animated rather than contemplative. A different side of Evangelho. It was just as interesting, but felt like looking through a different lens. I suspect the dominant Carignan did that, and I liked the result.
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2 hour decant before first glass. This is just an absolutely beautiful wine. The color has a lovely purple hue that shows a gorgeous magenta with some nice pinkish notes under the light. Vibrant classic carignan notes on the nose. Strawberry, Blueberry cobbler with some spices, lots of acid in the finish. Absolutely delicious right now with a decant but built to last like most things from Evangelho.
Really hit its stride after 4 hours of air.
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Carignane and Mourvedre from an old vine California "gran cru" site in Contra Costa.
What great brightness from the fruit here! Vine fresh raspberries and river rock mineral acidity. Nice complicity for a medium weight wine, finding some herbaceous tones and a hint of meatiness.
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14% abv. Dark ruby, nicely expressive aromas. 90% Carignan. Black cherry, cherry, strawberry, hints of floral and mint. Excellent depth and length, great mouthfeel and intensity. Surprising complexity for a wine so young. I've been anxious to try this and it exceeds my expectations. Absolutely delicious now and will only improve over the next several years. Kudos to Cody, Emily and the team.
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Couldn't resist, very accessible after 30 minutes in the decanter. Bright red fruits with a savory edge that developed with time in the glass -- delicious!
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5/5/2024 - AlphaMikeFoxtrot Likes this wine: 91 Points
90% Carignan, 10% Mourvèdre
Decanted for two hours. Ripe blueberries, over ripe black cherries, rose petals, dust, dirt, cedar and vanilla on the nose. The oak aromas are pretty subtle, though with everything else, the intensity of aromas comes out to medium +. The palate adds white pepper, orange peel, RED cherries and strawberry jam, as well as something resembling garrigue. It starts with a pop of blue and red fruit, then gets dusty and earthy. Finishes with a hint of plastic.
Medium bodied with medium + acid (when's the last time you had a Carignan with this much acid?) and medium tannin. Drink this now. Not going to improve with further aging; though I don't think it will decline for a while either. Made a great pairing with a chile relleno with chicken on cinco de Mayo.
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2/24/2024 - jpcart Likes this wine: 91 Points
Tannins have sorted themselves out, red fruits and very much fruit forward, but some earthiness to balance. Enjoyable and a killer bargain.
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12/8/2023 - Neras Likes this wine: 91 Points
Surely more integrated now. Dark berries, fresh, low on tannins. Nice and easy.
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6/8/2022 - VAGenius Likes this wine: 92 Points
PnP. Nose of wet sawdust and white pepper. Vibrant, rustic red fruit with tart acidity, tannins, and dried tarragon and sage. Resolved tannins, loads of earth, tart red fruit, and dusty earth, finishing medium long. This is well put-together and balanced. I'm sure it will hold but I like it now.
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5/23/2022 - Mike Dildine Likes this wine: 94 Points
Last bottle of the '18 (sigh)
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1/8/2022 - jcassi01 Likes this wine: 91 Points
Beautiful color that I won’t attempt to describe. Solid nose of red and purple fruit that followed on the palate. The red fruit had richness to it, but there was lifting acid that prevented it from tasting heavy. Right down the middle medium bodied is how I would describe it. This wine is like a great pair of loafers, you can dress it up (dinner party quality) or dress it down (Friday night pizza and movie). Highly recommend. Needs decanting due to sediment.
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6/9/2021 - Mike Dildine Likes this wine: 93 Points
Very pure and delicious. Cody did this great vineyard justice!
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12/29/2020 - Mike Dildine Likes this wine: 94 Points
14% abv. Medium ruby red, very aromatic. On the palate, red cherry, raspberry preserves, rose petals. Impeccably balanced, great mouthfeel, depth and length. Terrific now and will no doubt improve over the next 6-8+ years. I love the way Cody coaxes red fruited deliciousness out of these old CC Carignan vines. Simply delicious.
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11/16/2020 - River Rat Likes this wine:
3rd day since opening. Layers of crunchy red fruit with a kiss of Mourvèdre funk. Still throwing some significant tannin so no rush to open but damn this is delicious!
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9/24/2020 - Rieslingfan wrote:
Just to start out, Evangelho is my personal favorite of the old vines sites in California. There’s something about the wines that come from it that reaches deep into what’s left of my soul. Normally I find a sappy depth to the wines, but this one was different. This one showed a brightness, a lift that made me sit up and take notice rather than just revel in the texture. It still showed all the red fruit character, but it was accented by citrus zest. This made it more animated rather than contemplative. A different side of Evangelho. It was just as interesting, but felt like looking through a different lens. I suspect the dominant Carignan did that, and I liked the result.
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9/23/2020 - adnorthup Likes this wine: 95 Points
2 hour decant before first glass. This is just an absolutely beautiful wine. The color has a lovely purple hue that shows a gorgeous magenta with some nice pinkish notes under the light. Vibrant classic carignan notes on the nose. Strawberry, Blueberry cobbler with some spices, lots of acid in the finish. Absolutely delicious right now with a decant but built to last like most things from Evangelho.
Really hit its stride after 4 hours of air.
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9/21/2020 - seanucsb wrote: 92 Points
Carignane and Mourvedre from an old vine California "gran cru" site in Contra Costa.
What great brightness from the fruit here! Vine fresh raspberries and river rock mineral acidity. Nice complicity for a medium weight wine, finding some herbaceous tones and a hint of meatiness.
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7/30/2020 - Neras Likes this wine: 92 Points
Young. Quite perfumed. Reminds me of Gigondas! Balanced and complex with many years ahead.
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6/19/2020 - fredman wrote: 91 Points
One-hour decant. Fun bottle. Perfumed nose, bright red fruit. Drink or hold.
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6/19/2020 - Mike Dildine wrote: 94 Points
14% abv. Dark ruby, nicely expressive aromas. 90% Carignan. Black cherry, cherry, strawberry, hints of floral and mint. Excellent depth and length, great mouthfeel and intensity. Surprising complexity for a wine so young. I've been anxious to try this and it exceeds my expectations. Absolutely delicious now and will only improve over the next several years. Kudos to Cody, Emily and the team.
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10/21/2019 - Jubi Likes this wine: 92 Points
Couldn't resist, very accessible after 30 minutes in the decanter. Bright red fruits with a savory edge that developed with time in the glass -- delicious!
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