nice part of having a cellar is you can have an Ipod-on-shuffle kind of week and haphazardly pull some interesting wines. with zero forethought i pulled two 2000 & two 2003 wines and just liked how this photo came out.
03 Pepper Bridge Cabernet Sauvignon was so zesty and light on its feet, like a really well-bred Zin almost. tannins integrated and mouthfeel unobtrusive it is the fruit here that takes center stage and this fruit is bright and shiny. drink this up and enjoy like a great summertime novel that displays universal themes and may have some staying power. this bottle was empty fast!
03 Peay Syrah is a wine of great interest to us as we have had the pleasure of enjoying both La Bruma & Les Titans on multiple occasions thru a few vintages. this wine is as good as it is going to get now and that is a very good thing for cold-weather Syrah fans. so right in so many ways, a testament to what can be achieved here in CA. while i adore La Bruma i would not have cried if this was the only Syrah Vanessa, Nick & Andy had decided to make year-in, year-out. thx to my buddy Bruce who gifted me this delicious wine.
00 Juslyn Napa Valley is the relatively inexpensive Meritage wine from a excellent producer. 69% Cab Sav, 18% Merlot and 13% Cab Franc this was a WTSO purchase with this bottle being the best of the lot - one bottle was terribly corked. definitely more classically styled, dense and slightly oaky after The Washington St wine but very enjoyable and a bit tannic still. IMO a well kept bottle will live for several years.
00 Girardi Amarone della Valpolicella Classico is also in a fine spot right now nearly 1/2 way thru a case bought upon release. just subtle raisin now accents the earth funk and Corvina Veronese plums. really mouth-watering acidity makes this bottle a stand-out and it wasn’t pricey like Allegrini or Masi. no doubt this wine keeps going for years. if you had to drink wine from just one country for the rest of your life…