TN: JCCllrs PetiteSirah EaglepointRanch '08..(short/boring)

TomHill · April 10, 2011, 3:04pm

Tried this last night w/ pizza:

JCCllrs PetiteSirah EaglepointRanch/MendoCnty (15%) 2008: Black color; strong earthy/dusty/peppery some blackberry/PS/tarry/pungent some toasty/Fr.oak slight ripe/alcoholic powerful licorice/smokey nose; soft very rich/lush/extracted somewhat rough/tannic/extracted bit earthy/peppery blackberry/PS huge fruit flavor; long intense/extracted/tannic mouthfilling ripe/blackberry/PS/peppery light earthy/tarry/pungent some toasty/Fr.oak finish; a huge/massive rendition of PS as only JeffCohn can do; not for the AFWE; I have every expectation that this wine can go out 10-15 yrs, but just guessin’; it walks that fine line of ripeness w/o being overripe or over-the-top; fairly priced at $45.00.

Behind every great wine is a guy on a tractor. That would be our Casey.
Tom

Curt_Wood · April 11, 2011, 3:10am

Had this a couple of weeks ago and agree with you Tom that maybe some more aging was in order. I really like their wines and find more and more of them here in MD. Now if they would just answer my emails. But that is another story.

Cheers,
Curt

Scott_Williams · April 11, 2011, 4:05pm

Hey Tom, thanks for the note. I searched for and found your note on the 2007 version (below), and it seems like the 2008 is a bit more approachable if I can read between the lines correctly. My question for you is, have you revisited the '07 lately or are you waiting until 2025? I only ask because Lot18 is currently selling the '07 for $31.50, and with all the voucher credits I’ve got, this amounts to about $13 in real money. Would you pull the trigger on a few for that price? I’m not the biggest fans of Petite’s or monstrous wines in general, but I have had a few Switchback Ridge’s that were really nice.

cheers,
scott

TomHill:

Wanted something hefty w/ my BarBQue pulled pork samwich, so cracked:

JCCellars PetiteSirah EaglePointRanch/MendoCnty (15%; http://www.JCCellars.com" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;) 2007: Black color; rather strong toasty/smokey/pungent/charred fairly strong peppery/licorice/PS/blackberry/tarry very intense nose; massive/hard/tannic/extracted charred/toasty/oak some tarry/licorice/pungent/PS/blackberry slight hot/alcoholic heavy-bodied very extracted flavor; fairly long very tannic/hard/extracted strong PS/blackberry/licorice/tarry/peppery rather toasty/charred/smokey/oak finish w/ massive tannins; a huge/extracted PS w/ loads of oak; may be a long ager, may never come together…I’m clueless. $45.00

Parker:

2007 Eaglepoint Ranch Vineyard Petite Sirah - Mendocino l 92+ points l $45
There is slightly more of the 2007 Petite Syrah Eaglepoint Ranch, which exhibits an inky/purple color as well as a big, thick, rich, masculine, pure style. It will be extremely long-lived.

And a wee BloodyPulpit:

This wine is a bit of a puzzle to me. Though it held up to the BarBQue pork and was not emasculated by it; I didn’t find this wine a particular pleasure. Probably would have enjoyed the Brachetto sitting there a bit more.
This is a massively extracted PS. The pleasure one finds from this kind of wine is not drinking it, but what you anticipate in the future. Is this PS going to be a great mature PS w/ 10-15 yrs of age??? Parker states w/ his customary air of certainity that it will. I guess I’m not that certain. But, then, he’s a professional critic and knows what he’s talking about…I just a mere amateur and not always the sharpest pencil in the box.
The wine has the extraction and tannin levels that would suggest a great wine w/ age. But I’m not sure that is all that is needed. The wine reminded me of two wines from outta my past, when they were young. The Ridge YorkCreek PS '71 and the two DavidBruce PS’s '70 & '71 from MaryCarter’s vnyd. It resembles the Ridge, but w/ a different kind of oak, but more PS fruit. But it probable resembles the DavidBruce’s more because of the oak intensity and the fruit extraction, and the alcohol level.
In its youth, though it was pretty intense, nothing particularly suggested to me that the Ridge was a 30 yr PS. But the wine easily made that and, at 25 yrs of age, was one of the most profound/mature Calif RW’s I ever done tasted.
Likewise, because of the fruit extraction, the oak levels, and the intense tannins; I was absolutely certain that the DavidBruce’s would outlive me. The late JohnBrennan predicted, with the usual authority of a professional wine critic, that the '70 would peak in 2010-2020. Alas, the wine was barely holding on for dear life by the early 1980’s and turning into a hot/alcoholic/raisened/stewed fruit mess of a wine by the mid-late '80’s.
So which one is the JCCellars Eaglepoint?? Beats heck out of me…I don’t have the experience to make that prediction. You should probably go w/ the professionals and load up on this wine. I have one btl left and view it as a gamble. I may regret that down the road…who knows??
The only thing I can say about this wine with certainty is that the guy on the tractor behind this wine sure knows what he’s doing. Grew the best PS fruit he knows how to do.

We all “know” from the authorities that a young/tannic wine like this benefits from “breathing”. Over the course of the evening I tried this wine whilst cooking, it remained fiercly tannic. I shloshed it around quite a bit, but w/ little beneficial effect. It sat out overnite on the counter open to the air. This morning, there was a noticible loss of fruit and the tannins were even more ferocious; one of the most painful wines I’ve had of late. Just don’t understand why everyone reaps great benefits from letting a young/tannic wine breathe; but it seldom happens to me. Must be the altitude…or the radiation up here.
Tom

TomHill · April 11, 2011, 4:22pm

Well, Scott…I think Jeff’s '08 version is a bit rounder/lusher/more approachable than my recollect of the '07 was. But not had them side-by-side,
so it’s a tough call.
I think both the '07 and the '08 will age pretty well. But, then, PS can be a bit erratic in their aging curves and I may be totally wrongo/dongo.
The $31.50 price is a pretty good price for the '07, let alone your $13 price. I’d go for it.
Tom

larry_schaffer · April 11, 2011, 4:39pm

Scott,

The JC wines are always very well made, and I’ve enjoyed Jeff’s PS’s as well as his syrahs for quite some time. You mention that you’ve enjoyed the Switchback Ridge PS’s - my guess is that the JC probably sees less new oak than the SR; it may also be a bit more ‘rough around the edges’ and therefore need more time in bottle than the SR? Just a thought.

For that price, though, you really can’t go wrong . . .

Cheers!

Scott_Williams · April 12, 2011, 3:13pm

Hi Tom and Larry,

Thanks for your input and thoughts. I don’t recall the Switchback Ridge Petite (2002) being particularly oaky, but then that might have been masked by its massive structure anyway. For what it is, it was a nice wine, and I actually enjoyed it much more in its youth than the last bottle I had more recently, which was beginning to shed its fruit (but not tannins or alcohol). As I’ve never had a 20-30 year old PS, I can’t even begin to guess whether the SR will come around again to a better place once the tannins soften, but I’ve still got a bottle left, which I’ll probably hold a while longer.

Anyway, back on topic, I decided to pick up a four pack of the '07 JC Cellars Eaglepoint PS, as it does seem hard to go wrong at this price ($12.60 + tax, w/ free shipping). I’ll be sure to post a follow-up note in this thread when I pop one.

cheers,
scott

TomHill · April 12, 2011, 3:25pm

That’s a great price for that wine, Scott. You done did good.
Tom