TN: Two JCCellars Reds '10...(short/boring)

WINE TALK
1

To go with my BBQ Brisket Shepard’sPie, I cracked:

  1. JCCellars TheFallenAngel ElDiabloVnyd/RRV (15.5%; 50% Grenache/Syrah) JeffCohn/Oakland 2010: Very dark/near black color; rather alcoholic/fumey/overripe strong blackberry/strawberry/Syrah some toasty/oak/pencilly bit Rhonish/smokey/peppery quite interesting/bit complex nose; soft rather alcoholic/hot/fumey/overripe some toasty/smokey/Fr.oak ripe/blackberry/Syrah slight Rhonish/peppery flavor w/ modest bitey tannins; very long/lingering rather hot/fumey/alcoholic strong ripe/blackberry/strawberry/Syrah some toasty/oak finish w/ light chewey tannins; a rather interesting red that speaks mostly of very ripe Syrah in the classic JeffCohn style.
  1. JCCellars Landy PetiteSirah SweetwaterSpringsVnyd/RRV (15.5%) 2010: Black color; strong toasty/pungent/charred/oak strong blackberry/licorice/PS slight alcoholic/fumey quite attractive PS nose; soft some hot/alcoholic/fumey ripe blackberry/PS/pungent/licorice strong toasty/charred/oak slight earthy/rustic flavor w/ some hard/chewey tannins; very long/lingering intense PS/licorice/blackberry some hot/fumey finish w/ some hard/chewey tannins; don’t see this getting much better and only more alcoholic.

A wee BP:

  1. I have, of course, followed JeffCohn from the very start, when he was asst winemaker for KentRosenblum in Alameda. He made his first wine in 1996 whilst still at Rosenblum. He departed Rosenblum in 2006 and started JCCllrs in Oakland. More recently, he moved his winemaking to SantaRosa and opened a tasting room in Healdsburg.
    Jeff specializes in reds, particularly Rhones. His wines are typically pretty big and often on the alcoholic side. And sometimes on the expensive side. Alas, he’s sorta fallen off my radar.
    Tom
2

Jeff’s winery is now officially called “Jeff Cohn Cellars”. The tasting room is actually in Sonoma, not Healdsburg.

3

As did I. Never thought they would really age too well because they were full of alcohol and upfront fruit (which was their immediate charm).

4

I loved the ‘96 Rhodes Zinfandel he made. And his original Philary Vineyard Syrah was (despite the minuscule production—maybe 10 cases?) one of my favorite Syrahs at that time. I never held his wines long enough to know how they aged, but still have a soft spot for him and Alexandra when they welcomed my brother and me to their Alameda facility many years ago.