I decided to pop this with my dad and mom over the weekend for no reason in particular other than, “Why not?” My dad definitely loves older wines, but my mom doesn’t. However, even she enjoyed this one. My dad opened a 1991 Silver Oak Alexander Valley Cab that showed well too, but had a persistent green streak running through it. From CT:
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1978 Concannon Vineyard Petite Sirah - USA, California, San Francisco Bay, Livermore Valley (9/4/2021)
This was an auction purchase a year or so ago (winebid). Fill level was into the neck. Upon removing the capsule, there was a good amount of mold around the cork. I forgot my durand and used an ah-so with corkscrew, yet still broke the cork. If was nice and most still and didn’t appear to have allowed any seepage. Upon first pour, the color was surprisingly ruby red with minimal bricking and no browning. The nose was subtle but great: dried cherry, tobacco, a nice hint of rose hip. The palate was mature yet more youthful than I anticipated with flavors of cherry, dried plum, earthy humidor, and the tannin was still slightly present. The wine actually gained some heft by the second glass. Really fun to drink and a great showing. Had I not known, as I often read, I would’ve pegged this as a Bordeaux variety(ies) and not Petite Sirah. (92 pts.)
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All in all, it was a perfect way to enjoy the bottle and showed how well this variety can age.