The Babylon was WON and a bit of a surprise. Big wine but a good bit of acidity kept it sleek, elegant (descriptors one doesn’t usually associate with Abe or his wines) and fresh.
Of the whites the LSB was a bit tamer than in past years, not nearly as much cat pee - the Prince otoh had lots of cat pee on the nose and stones on the palate.
I want you to know you have now caused me to go to scratch paper #2 with this Scholium order. I am desperately trying to keep this order under 15-18 bottles and I am not winning.
Thanks for all the info Robert. Due to some unexpected work obligations, my wife and i had to cancel. Very tough to miss this. Hopefully we’ll be able to get the Scholium offline together in November!
What I learned…
Every tasting/wine discussion with Abe I learn something new and fascinating. Past talks on S02, reduction, oxygen have all expanded/informed my views on wine.
In this particular tasting Abe talked about the role that extended lees contact and tannins plan in his winemaking style. He does not rack or top some of his wines (e.g., Babylon stays in barrel for three years without racking or topping) yet they still taste fresh and not oxidized. Simply put, the lees absorb oxygen. I understand that racking removes things (good and bad) but never really thought about the results of long-term barrel aging combined with extended lees contact.
In all the combination of vineyards,not racking and possibly the higher alcohol levels contribute to the unique Scholium way of expressing terrior. The Babylon was the ultimate manifestation of this…
Sorry the photos from Brooklyn haven’t lived til today but we uncorked a 2008 Bricco Babelico tonight with Tri Tip and it’s stunningly fresh and crazy delicious.
We had a baddish streak going this week but we busted outta that Aaron Judge style.
Just a killer wine. Glad it knocked you out of your slump my man!