1992 Cabs and Blends

[winoweenie]

O.K. here goes wif` the wines slurped at the BAWDIE meeting.I`ll start by saying the Buck-man would have spit out the Dehlinger. Lots of oak when 1st poured but after an hour in glass the cedar subsided to reveal a large core of brite cherry fruit with a nice spicy overtone. The Dalle Valle was still deep-ruby with no sign of age. The nose had lots of black fruit, some red cherry, a touch of vanilla and all came thru on the palate. This is one whale of a bottle that still has enough rounded tannins to take this another 10 years. Superb.The Duckhorn "Howell Mtn" was a real sleeper.61% merlot, 30% cab, and 9% cab franc( Don`t tell Wallace) this is one fine bottle of juice.Beautiful nose, superior entry, good middle palate and a medium long finish this would please any red wine drinker. Fruit is probably from the Bancroft Ranch.Dunn " Napa " was a minor dissapointment. I don`t agree with Jock that there`s no fruit, but with the faith and experience I have in Randy`s wines, I think the wine is going thru a Dumb period. I`ll give it another 6-8 months and try again. The Dunn "Howell" is typical Howell estate cab. Has oodles of it all, fruit, oak, spice, chocolate, vanilla, AND Tannin.Just starting to turn the corner toward civility, this brute will be superb given another 2-4 years. I`ll wait.Last, but certainly, not least is the Etude. Tony Soter, ( Who helped Many of Napa`s great wineries to define their style including Diamond Creek) made one of the best wines of the vintage. Rich,an almost purple,opaque color with an impression of sweetness that the massive amount of fruit imparts.Tannins are soft and seamless.Love what Tony is doing at Etude. Wine Speculator voted this at the 41 spot on their top 100 wines of 95(I think). We had 3 "Orphans" I found in the cellar also.I reported on the Merlots in the proper thread, and made an entry on the 79 Vieux Telegraphe several weeks ago. They were Keen. Jock and the others pretty well agreed on the 92`s. I liked the Duck-Howell because of it`s great pleasurably-drinkin` personality. Oh well! On to F`s.winoweenie