I have a vague recollection that this won a few awards a year or two after release. But that was a long time ago, and should not have any impact on the wine now .......
Still ruby in colour and quite dense. The nose is mostly lacking in primary fruit, or most things at all - just some faint secondaries and savoury characters. However, this totally contrasts the palate, which is full bodied, with some tannic grip and big flavours of milk chocolate, raspberry jam and a touch of coffee grounds. Long finish and an almost total absence of savoury characters. Bizarre.
A schizophrenic wine at this (possibly terminal) stage of development? I've had a few bottles of this over the years and it is quite different now. Yet - surprisingly enjoyable. And I still have one left. The dilemma is to drink it soon (practical) or leave it another year and see how more strange this gets
Cheers Allan
Wine, women and song. Ideally, you can experience all three at once.
"The dilemma is to drink it soon (practical) or leave it another year and see how more strange this gets". In April 2016, the final bottle appears better than the one opened in 2015. No fresh fruit, of course, but a little raspberry that wasn't evident a year ago, and less savoury. The notes on the palate from last year, however, are exactly the same, and the wine is still enjoyable.
Time to say goodbye to this wine, but the memory will remain.
Wine, women and song. Ideally, you can experience all three at once.
Who wants fresh fruit? It's available in buckets at the local drive through. Cellaring is not about fruit, it's about subtlety, complexity, earthiness, and all those other tertiary characteristics. Okay, rant over.
