1999 Tobin James Legend

[Innkeeper]

1999 Tobin James, Legend, Paso Robles, Cabernet Sauvignon ($16). It has modest horsepower by today's standards, weighing in at 13.5% alcohol. Few things send my antennae atwitter more than producers who claim their wine is, "ready to drink now, but will improve with two or three more years in the bottle." One end or the other of this claim is usually bogus. This wine fills the bill. Decanted it an hour ahead of time, but that was probably unnecessary. It showed typical cabernet varietal aromas of cassis, berries, and cherries on the nose that carried over to the tongue tip. This was followed by yummy complexity and smooth tannin across the palate. The finish lingered on and on. It had enough acid, and other qualities to actually improve as advertised another year or three. It matched perfectly with two grillpanned NY/KC Angus strip steaks, sweet potatoes and salad. The steaks were marinated in leftover syrah, patted dry, and rubbed with OO and Morton rub. It's been a year or so since we posted this rub from the Morton Steak House that is in the public domain:

MORTON'S STEAK RUB:

3 tbl Kosher (or sea) salt
3 tbl Paprika
2 tbl Black pepper
1 tbl Granulated garlic (powder)
1 tbl Granulated onion (powder)
1/2 tbl Ground thyme

Whisk together. Dry store in opaque jar. Tbl's can be reduced to tsp's for a test try.

[This message has been edited by Innkeeper (edited 07-27-2004).]