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BerserkerDay Archive (BerserkerDays 1-14) Berserker Quarantine Relief
21

Thanks Michael! So how about 4 hours for the Alicante, and 2 for the Mission and Marsanne? And what about the Flaming Tokay? (God I love that name!)

22

2 hours for the Mission. Pop and pour the Marsanne. Alicante a year or two, LOL. Haven’t opened the Tokay yet.

23

Order in. Looking forward to trying them!

24

Great service from Adam and so far, the wine I tried was full of intrigue and charm.

The Flame Tokay rose was basically a pnp for us the other night and immediately reminded us of a Frappato Rose (called Osa!) from Paolo Cali in Sicily. Really minerally and full of fresh strawberry. As I believe he noted in his preview of the wines, serve this at a slightly warmer temperature for the best expression. We found it best when cool (60ish?).

Cool stuff, looking forward to the others!

25

Thank you all!

Yes, texted with Nate about the Mission and confessed to him that I’d actually never given the Mission 3+ hrs of decant until then as I always considered it pop and pour. That night I did and it brought a new nuance to it, more fruit. The Mission doesn’t have a lot of overt fruit up front and that’s a varietal characteristic - it’s strengths come from the peppery tannins it’s capable of. This Mission has always felt very velvety rather than fruity to me, although there is a distinct underpinning of fruit compote in the background. Bone dry as it is, there’s a little sweetness there somehow on the palate.

I agree that the Alicante probably needs a little more time, ideally, or at least a generous decant. It was during its whole elevage a real shapeshifter of a wine - one month it was the most sublime thing ever and then the month after it was vegetal and a little unbalanced. That cycle kept repeating itself. I already much prefer it now 2 months in from bottling than right after, so it’s moving in the right direction. That said, I also have customers who love that wine and just order that. And my wife prefers the AB to any of the others.

The Flame Tokay I would not overly decant. I noticed that if I keep the Flame out over night in an open bottle, it loses most of its vigor the day after. That’s not true for any of the others, so it tells me the Flame probably won’t see a lot to benefit from aging, although I initially said it might due to it’s skin contact. I could be wrong on this part - will the skin structure of it trump it’s quicker decline in oxygenation? Only time will tell, but logic would suggest not. Rosé’s tend to get drunk pretty fast, anyway.

[cheers.gif] flirtysmile

26

Awesome thanks for chiming in! I have the alicante and the mission in decanters now, the virtual tasting is starting in 90 minutes!

27

Well, Adam, what can I say. You have made some truly unique and amazing wine. There was a tie last night between the Gordon W and the La Malinche wines, but all four of them were showing super well. one of the cool moments last night was when we went back to revisit the Milk Fed after getting through the line up. Although I pulled the bottle out of the wine fridge a couple hours before the tasting it must have still been too cold, because it really impressed the second time around! And the transluscence of the La Malinche belies its true nature, we expected something much more delicate and thin, but wow did it surpise. I couldn’t get enough of that peppery tannin. Just an awesome job all the way around. Well done.

28

What a pleasure to hear, Jonathan! [dance-clap.gif]

I’m actually going to revise my recommendations on Milk Fed to enjoy it almost room temp, as you pointed out. Coldness brings out the maceration’s bitter tones (even when it’s just chilled) and it’s just a much nicer wine when served a little warmer. [thankyou.gif]

29

Chiming in. Had the Milk Fed about two weeks ago (apologies for the delay) and loved the savoriness and heft of body it had. As Adam mentions, it improved as it warmed a bit in the glass.

Thank you for making such unique wines Adam.

30

Order in! I’ve been wanting to try your wines since BD11. Looking forward to some new varietals in the cellar.

31

Ordered a sampler pack, as these wines sound fascinating. Keep posting tasting notes everyone.

32

Thanks Jorge!

Another great review, this time for the Alicante from Stephen McConnell:

This was the wine I was most afraid of sending out to reviewers, to be honest. As I’ve mentioned, it was a complete shapeshifter all the way through elevage. One week it was vegetal, then good, then a month later monolithic, then great again, then metallic etc. Could never get a full grip on where it would settle. It’s now easing into a better place, for sure, but still the wine that needs the most time out of them.

Glad he liked it and glad it presented well on that day.

33

We finally made our way through all four varietals. The Marsanne is very unique and maybe our favorite with a peach and wet stone profile. Great summer drinker. The Misson is ready to go - easily approachable now. Sort of a Grenache/Cinsault ish flavor with a red, spicy fruits profile. The Flame Tokay is light, fun, orange oil most prominent. The Alicante needs time to settle in.

Overall I give Adam an A+ for thinking outside the box. I thought all the wines are worthy of trying, some really good, some at least worth the price.

Adam, please keep following your desires and making wines from forgotten grapes. It’s a really cool idea.

Bravo!

34

Thanks Michael! Glad you enjoyed them.

35

I got my sampler pack yesterday and popped the Mission tonight. We found this to be a charmingly enjoyable wine (being in the AFWE club and “hating” CA wines in general). I agree with some of the previous notes about its intriguing savory, peppery character. Something we found very interesting is that this wine has a very attractive sweetness on the nose. Sweet cranberry? Rainier Cherry? Honey baked ham? Not sure but is was a great pairing for grilled venison steak and roasted brussel sprouts.

A question for Adam and other imbibers: This wine still seemed to have some very convincing muscle to it. Very drinkable now, but is capable of ageing into something even more?

36

Chris, glad you liked it! What would you say it reminded you of? I’ve heard anything from light Nebbiolo, to Pinot Noir, to Grenache etc. It’s completely dry wine, but I agree, it has a note of sweetness somehow.

You’re not the only one who’s suggested it might develop further with age. I’ve always put it into the “ready-to-drink-now” category more, but I could be wrong. It just feels quite smooth and enveloped already, and doesn’t have any sharper edges that might mellow over time. But that doesn’t mean it won’t elevate - it certainly has enough tannins to stay engaged for a long time. Huge tannins is a Mission trait and they all share a much bigger mouthfeel than the color would suggest. Mission does lack in acid, though, so you have to be a little careful in not picking it too late, as it tends to drop off a cliff there.

Interestingly, I had a online conversation with an Argentinian oenologist today, Gustavo Alberto Aliquó, who has dug very deep into the Negra Criolla, aka Mission down there. And he also suggested that the variety due to its resistant nature and big tannins is a great candidate for longtime aging. In fact, he said that was how it conquered the Americas, not only as a resistant plant, but also its capability to make wine that aged and could be transported long distances under bad conditions and keep well. It’s very interesting to hear this, as it kind of goes against the collective notion we have about Mission today.

And funnily, it’s something along those lines I’m doing with a kind of “Grand Reserve” Mission to be released sometime next year… Little too early to talk about specifics, but I think it will be a very interesting wine.

37

The sweetness kept making me think of Pinor Noir (Oregon sweetness) but the savory/pepper elements invoked Gamay/Rhone. It was gratifying that my wife really liked it (rule #1, buy wine the wife likes too) and suggested we crack the second bottle for a Cali-transplant friend who still dreams of growing up drinking Alexander Valley Zin yet has somehow managed to love every bottle we open for him.

The Mission is absolutely drinkable now as proven by the empty bottle I am looking at. However, I think it could still evolve quietly for several years. Do you not have any older examples?

38

2018 was my first vintage. I do have some older Mission from other producers in the cellar, but hard to compare or judge as they’re kind of different in style. I would suggest to try some of Chilean producer Gonzalez Bastias Mission wines. He makes two that are really nice and inexpensive - the Mattoral and the Tinaja. Excellent little wines.

39

order in. looking forward to it. thx. karl

40

Adam, two things:

  1. The Flame Tokay is lit, I love it. I’m getting some lovely melon and orange, and a hint of something that’s almost botrytis-y.

  2. How long is this running for?