TN: 1999 Behrens & Hitchcock Fat Boy (USA, California, Napa Valley)

WINE TALK
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  • 1999 Behrens & Hitchcock Fat Boy - USA, California, Napa Valley (8/9/2009)
    Woah…this was rough! I want to say this was well made. I want to say this was a typical B&H fruit bomb. I want to say I liked it despite the high alcohol content especially since I am a fan of B&H but just can’t. I even want to say this was rough because of the synthetic cork but that wasn’t it either.

Somewhat aromatic the nose was heavily alcohol laden. I decanted this in the hopes some of the funk would blow off…nope!

VERY glyceril and syrupy swee thtis was heavy, clunky and just not good, especially by itself. Hoping it would fare better with some grub this juice did not get better at any point. I fought through a glass in the hopes it would get softer, rounder, more approachable but nope again! Half of this went down the drain. Why drink something you don’t enjoy on any level. Given the pricepoint this wine is an inmitigated disaster and I am praying the 2004’s I have in the cellar are somewhat better (although they have an even HIGHER alcohol content).

While I still remain a fan, this is yet another wine from this producer that I check off the list and put in the “do not buy” category.

Total bummner. 1 yum (70 pts.)

Posted from CellarTracker

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John,
As I am reading a number of similarly themed B&H TNs recently. Can I ask … did you taste the wine upon release and like it, then buy or did you buy it based on familiarity with the makers previous stuff? Not trying to be judgemental but, I am considering abandoning the buy on “reviews and knowledge of the house” for the only “buy what you try” mentality. Here, in the hinterland of wine retailing the latter is really tough.
Cheers,
Scott

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I wrote the following in a post on July 31:

It beggars the imagination to consider how bad this wine would taste at 10 years of age.

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They do have great names, though!

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Please save one stored on it’s side in your cellar for 4 more years and report in 2013. deadhorse

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Phil I bought a lot of their Cabs and loved them. Big, rich fruity wines often named after wonderful pets of the winery that I met and fell in love with.
I first heard complaints about the corks in 2002. I placed all of my B&H wines upright so that they could not touch the corks.
I sadly stopped buying the wines and did finally drink them all.
Final analysis most Cabernets were salvaged by my effort of getting the corks out of range of the wine. Nevertheless, the Syrahs and merlots were still torched.

Poor Lori Spossey McLaughlin formerly from Tejas still has 12 cases of them. headbang

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Scott,

I did not try any of these wines upon release. I probably would have liked these alot then though. My first deep dive with B&H was with a tasting that included OdP (still really like this wine alot when it is not f’d up), Hommage to Ed O, , Chien Lunatique, Several cabs along with some otehrs in the portfolio.

While by my standards I have considerable cash invested in B&H juice it likely pales in comparison to others and I make no bones about still being a fan (hoping that under the new Erna Schein brand they get their house in winemaking order). Many have suggested I drink these young and I am now finding time to do that before they age which bothers me to no end, especially at the pricepoint.

As for reviews; truthfully I am not much of a pointchaser and RP’s reviews like many other “professionals” mean little to me. In all honesty what I give the most weight to are the reviews from my peers on CT. True, many are overly generous in their points awarded but it is rather the decriptives and commentary that I find most valuable first. All other data, professional reviews or otherwise fall rank in file behind that.

JG3

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Of course this is just my opinion . . . but the releases from Erna Schein I tried were total dog shit. I am sure they will even better in 2013 . . . petrified dog shit.

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Actually John, I tasted them last August at a local trade show and thought the same thing. Thin, acidic and fruitless. I asked the rep if she thought that they were ok and she said they were great.
Maybe The B&H were intended to taste that way??? [swoon.gif] [shock.gif] [scratch.gif] hitsfan

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Tell us how you realy feel.

FYI, I visited the winery 2 years ago and tasted through the 2005s at that point. Very unimpressive.

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Would you have it any other way?

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The truth is the only way to go, John!

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I also disagree with Jack’s assessment of the new vintage. They were certainly not thin, acidic and fruitless. Far from it in fact. I recall the Jersey Boy to be a blue fruit salad dashed with coconut and vanilla syrup, absolutely no acidity, a monster of glop and pretty much a creation I could only think Willa Wonka might have thought of. This was one of the better ones.

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Where was Willy making wine before B&H?

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John,
I long ago gave up on the numbers per se. With Parker I learned early that he has certain keywords for me that denote something I will like. Up here we don’t have mailing lists available (unless you want to pay the 100% duty on the “unaccompanied wine” as it comes into the province. Tasting before you buy here though is tough but, a couple our flagship stores – and these are big stores in any context – have finally put in tasting bars. Course in typical government run fashion you can only taste two wines whether you spit and leave wine in the glass or not.
Cheers,
Sccot