Cabernet Party

[oostexan]

My neighbors were kind enough to host a blind tasting last night, and though I am feeling a little groggy today, I thought I would share some of the details.

The wines were pretty disparate in terms of age, so even though it was a "blind" tasting for fun, I was able to quickly determine the wines by their qualities. Anyway, this is my order of ranking:

Pine Ridge 1999 Stag's Lead District Cabernet - Took a solid hour to open up, but once it did the fruit of cherries and plums made a great showing. Good structure and still a fair amount of tannin. Lovely aromas. Almost everyone gave this wine the top score and, naturally, it was one of the wines I had brought. :-)

1995 Far Niente Cabernet - I could have sworn this was a Bordeaux with its earthly aromas, slightly leathery flavor, and velvety finish. Great fruit, velvety finish, wonderful wine that I think is at its peak. I rarely drink wines with this much age, so who knows. When this was poured, I could see the slightly brown color and knew right away which bottle this was.

Robert Craig 2003 Mount Veeder Cabernet - I just got this via my wine club membership a few weeks ago and thought I would bring it. Its terrific. Great fruit, sturdy tannins that are not overwhelming, luscious finish. Very yummy and was distinctive in some tough company. I think the balanced fruit and tannin structure show good aging potential. I have another 3 bottles that I am going to put away.

Flora Springs 2002 Holy Smoke Cabernet - This one got a lot of "yum" remarks, but I thought the Robert Craig had just an inch more concentration and flavor. Ruby color in the glass, it has the classiness and distinction of refinement that I think are typical of Flora wines. A great drink.

Spottewood 2000 Cabernet - Ruby color, good nose, peppery finish. I did not think this bottle was in the same class as the above wines.

As if that was not enough, I opened a 2002 Shafer Relentless to see how a great Cali Syrah would hang with all these big dog Cabernets. As expected, our collective palates began to explode. This big, rich wine was like a bull in a china store. The berry aromas and flavors of meat and leather just made this guy the red headed stepchild. But wow, it is a fantastic wine.

It was a great night. We agreed to try to get together once a month in the future.

Mark