upon listening the advice of an LA buddy, knows his vino and usually what i’ll dig, a few years ago i petitioned to join the list @ Linne Calodo. LC is a Paso Robles winery making Zin & Rhone blends; not cheap wine by any standard. i think i waited nearly a year and began to be able to purchase in the 2005 vintage. i now have nearly 2 cases from this producer.
and i don’t think i like the wine!
so what am i missing? is this a producer whose wines need real serious time sideways to show well? every bottle leaves me with the same big-purple grape and sweet cherries in your mouth feeling with sometime noticeable, sometimes integrated EtOH. nothing really in regards to secondary/tertiary components. decanting doesn’t seem to put a dent in these bad boys, even 2nd day i don’t notice a real change. sometimes the wine does well with the hold-it-in-your-mouth-and-it-tastes-better test and sometimes these wines fail this old catechism.
so i am looking for insight and experience. thx in advance.
That’s why God invented Commerce Corner. It’s real big, over the top wine.
IF you have any of their mourvedre-based wines you want to sell, let me know.
I wouldn’t say they are shy wines… but I love their style! How long you can hold them is up for debate… i found the grenache, syrah or mouvedre based wines can last at least five years (working my way through the 03’s), and the zin based are more sporadic: the 03 Problem Child was outstanding, which the 03 Cherry is in a funky place… i think the region as a whole have dialed it back a bit and think 07 will be a great vintage for the area… just my .02:)
Not my style either, but that’s what seems to get the big scores.
With the high alcohols and probably high pH’s, I doubt these will go for more than a few short years.
I like the Nemesis and the Sticks & Stones the best. The other wines can be a bit hit and miss for me–sometimes they’re fun, juicy, rich wines, and sometimes they’re just a mess. I have been buying these for several years, but have cut back my purchases a bit the last year or so…
popped the 2006 Leona’s tonight as i was exhausted after work and wanted a pick-me-up wine that wouldn’t require too much contemplation. i still don’t get these?
are they American Oak wines? i couldn’t tell from the website.
Count me as not a fan. My limited experience is similar to yours. And when a friend, who is on their list, tried to make an appointment for us to taste when we were in the area in March they wanted to charge us. [blackeye.gif] And not for nothing but, in Paso, Villa Creek was much more to my tastes.
I also chime in with my dislike of these wines. I also don’t see them changing significantly with time, so if you don’t like them now, I doubt you’ll like them any better later on.
I like the wines when I am in the mood for something big and potent, but my interests have been tending away from that style of late. Since I have a decent stash and don’t think these are made for long-term aging, I am not a buyer anymore – especially with the current pricing.