So I just had to know how this bottle was showing given the quality of Scarecrow and the fact that this was a second label (arguably). Nice lift to the nose but a bit of a glycerin burn. On the palate, it shows gritty tannins, a bit light in fruit and a bitter finish. A touch of heat but nothing extreme. A bit heavy on the oak. Overall, a pleasant cab but IMO not near what the winery price. Given the fabulous wines produced from the 08 vintage, this is a let down. Certainly better than most $20-40 bottles but no where near most $75-100 bottles. 88-90pts.
Justin,
The original hype from the winery was that this was the juice that was just too good to sell off as bulk. Any chance that this wine is in an awkward phase, or was it your impression that it was showing true to form?
I’d say true to form and I say this based on my experience with Scarecrow. Scarecrow can be unbalanced or somewhat muted in it’s youth but it’s not thin, bitter or short. This is nowhere near as good as any of the young Scarecrows I have tasted.
That is too bad. I bought the little two-pak last year and was hoping that it was something to open as a special wine while I let the Scarecrows sleep.
This wine is actually falling apart in the glass. The fruit has gotten leaner and the alcohol more prevalent. Don’t get confused as this is not closing down, it’s actually losing it’s character. I’ll check in on this tomorrow but I can say with somewhat confidence that this wine is best consumed young and in the first hour or two. It’s gathering a green streak and the bitterness is crashing to the front. Disappointing. It’s starting to seem that I might have to give this a final score of 83-85pts if it doesn’t show improvement over the next 12-24 hours.
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