What bottle of Cayuse/No Girls/Horsepower did you open today?

WINE TALK
21

Seven Beef looks sick!

We had the 12 Impulsivo recently and I would caution just don’t. All the cool stuff is there but give the wine until 2020 or so.

22

I’ve reached a point where I think these wines will show their best with some serious age in the bottle say…a minimum of 8-10 years. So I’ve got one bottle of 2008 No Girls Syrah that I’m saving a bit…and the remaining Cayuse & Horsepower wines I have will wait until at least 10 years old.

23

I tend to agree with this, though I tend to like wines with more age anyway. Having said that, sometimes a young Cayuse can just sing.

Apropos of the disappointing 2009 Frog, I had a similar experience with a 2007 Frog that I opened for our tasting group. It just seemed muted and not very interesting. I don’t know if this is a dumb phase, or an off bottle, or something else.

24

Yeah, I couldn’t determine if that fruit was hiding in there somewhere or not either. I posted a note in another thread about my experience and added a note from the winery on the subject. The wine is definitely not meant to be fruit-forward. I agree with everyone that it might become something special after a very long slumber though.

25

Certainly can’t disagree that some of the bottlings need a few years to get settled. I think the Flying Pig (seriously underrated), Impulsivo (deserves any and all praise), Camaspelo, GOK, and the Widowmaker show much better after 5 years or so and most likely hit their sweet spot around year 8. Extremely difficult not to open them early when they are just staring at you with come f@#k me labels!

I’ve found the Frog, Cailloux, Armada, and En Chamberlin can be quite good out of the gate in some vintages. Specifically 2010 and 2012. The wildness, funkiness, and game meat flavors are definitely appealing to me in their youth, but the restrained aspects that each wine develops with time work for me, as well. Open one the first year and save the last two for years 5-10!

26

We just opened a 2011 Flying Pig last night. Absolutely delicious. Nice fruit, but not fruit forward. There is a nice restraint to this vintage that I like. It will definitely improve with more age in the bottle!

27

Ron,

One of the things I love about the Pig is that it’s not fruit-centric. A 2006 we had awhile back was all roasted poblano peppers! Totally agree on the 11’s that they have a nice restraint and femininity (if Cayuse wines can possess that!). Glad it showed well.

28

And now a 2004 Pig – perhaps becoming my favorite wine of the Cayuse line up

This is a lovely lovely wine. Cork broke on opening, but was able to strain it out. This has a wonderful nose of capsicum/Tabasco, leather, mint and other herbs. It reminds me of a good relatively young Bordeaux. Nice smooth fruit on the palate, with some nice acidity that gives it a good lift. Hints of violets, mint/eucalyptus, and even marzipan. The finish is fine and long. I worried that some of the Cayuse Bdx blends did not taste much different than the syrahs. This is exactly the opposite. Very much a product of its grapes, and its terroir. As someone recently said, people come to Cayuse for the syrahs but stay for the Bordeaux blends. Up until this point I did not agree – and maybe still don’t – but I see the point now! 93 points.

29

Ron, sounds great. Of all the wines I wish list from Cayuse, aside from the Viognier (which I just got!) Pig is the one I’ve most wanted.

30

Drank the En Cerise and the No Girls grenache last weekend (both 2012’s). Kind of surprised that they weren’t more accessible. Lots of goodies and stuffing just a bit large in scale. Maybe I’ve been drinking too many 10’s and 11’s!

2012 Cayuse En Cerise
Decanted for an hour or so and then sat for 15 minutes in the glass. I’ve been complaining lately (mostly to myself) that the En Cerise is the one wine in the Cayuse line-up that I have the least experience with. Why is that? It’s a highly thought of wine every vintage, earning praise left and right. It seems to possess the qualities I look for in a syrah…both savory characteristics and pure fruit. I realized that I don’t have a good explanation other than I’m an idiot! Luckily for me my brother-in-law, Fred, gets an allocation and I set out to introduce myself once again to the En Cerise. Just by looking at the wine in the glass, you could tell it was leaning more in the red fruit camp. Initial aromas of cherry and raspberry fruit with the unmistakable undercurrent of funk. Maybe I’ve been drinking too many 10’s and 11’s recently because this wine seemed amped up. While I thought the 12’s would be ready from the get go because of the perfect growing conditions, I really think this wine needs a bit of time to settle down. Definitely has everything I like in spades (red fruit, funk, earth, umami, soy, olives) and is a very good wine now but I would hold off for a year and let the amplification settle. 93++pts.

2012 No Girls Grenache
Decanted for roughly an hour. Been digging the Horsepower and No Girls grenache much more than the GOK lately and this wine continued in that vein. Very similar to the 12 En Cerise syrah actually, with it’s red fruit. Lots of raspberry, huckleberry, currants, and strawberry. Not nearly as much savoriness, which is good for this wine. So young, that even though there is grass on the infield you might want to wait a bit before you play ball. Good now but I think patience will reward you. 92+pts.

31

How are the 2010’s drinking?

I am contemplating opening either a Cailloux or En Cerise tonight.

32

Adam,
I usually don’t touch them for at least 5 years as a rule.As for which one to open, I am a big fan of the En Cerise though I suspect either will be quite tasty.Jared referenced 2010 on his tasting notes in this thread.You will be happy for sure [cheers.gif]

33

I don’t usually drink Cayuse,
but when I do,
I smell like my horse’s saddle.

2003 En Chamberlin Syrah last night, with the note cross posted from CT to WB last night.

34

Adam,

I am a huge proponent of the 2010 wines from Cayuse. For me, they possess the best of both worlds with the cool vintage fruit and restrained funk. I’ve found them to drink well now, but will also drink well for 15 years. Pop away!

35

Great note, Joe. The 03 En Chamberlin is the wine that really introduced me to Christophe’s wines. So wild in its youth and unlike anything I had drank before. So glad you enjoyed it!

36

Two wines from Saturday night…

2011 Cayuse Armada Syrah

Decanted for 2 hours. This wine has certainly grown and picked up complexity since I drank it last year. Much better wine, to be honest, and it wasn’t a slouch last year. The wine has developed a bit more palate weight and is bursting with fig, tea, dark cherry, mushroom, underbrush, olive, camphor, and black raspberries. Very firm, which I suspect is from some whole cluster that was not as present a year ago and lends a nice balance to the fruit. After drinking this bottle, I can see this wine peaking in about 3-5 years with even a few more points of potential lurking inside. Excited to follow the progress. 95pts++.


2012 No Girls Tempranillo

Decanted for roughly 2 hours. I could not leave this wine alone in the decanter as I kept swirling and smelling it every 10 minutes. Shawn Kemp as an 18 year old like potential for this baby (not babies which he is also knows well!). All coiled up and ready to spring forward and power down a reverse dunk over Kenny Walker of the Knicks like potential. Gorgeous ruby-red out of the bottle, this wine immediately sends up vapors of woodsmoke, bing cherry, plum, and clove. All of the characteristics you’d expect from a tempranillo but in a bit more lively package. Palate is loaded with both dark and red fruit and lingers with an interesting flavor of grilled tomato. Super long finish accentuated and framed by medium tannins. A fun wine to drink now with the potential to be a blockbuster down the road. 94+++pts.

37
  • 2009 No Girls Grenache - USA, Washington, Columbia Valley, Walla Walla Valley (4/9/2016)
    Nose smells a little meaty and funky. Cayuse? (Tasted blind). Low/med tannin, decent acid. Perplexed, but did enjoy (95 pts.)

Posted from CellarTracker

38

NIce [wow.gif]

LOL,

Kenney

39

2008 Bionic Frog for Mother’s Day dinner. Really good bottle with blood/mineral/meat/olive mélange. Finish had some noticeable heat. Beginning of a lengthy drinking window I suspect. Decanted 3+ hours and enjoyed from Zalto Bordeaux stems.
image.jpeg

40

God Only Knows 2008 94 (up from an initial 92 per the notes below)

PnP. Some of the usual Cayuse funk at first, which steps back a bit after a few minutes in the glass. This has all of the rustic savory flavors that one associates with many of the Cayuse lineup. The nose has some nice red fruits, brown spices (hints of cinnamon, clove), with hints of chocolate, wet stone, and one can go on and on. Very meaty and sinewy on the nose, but paired with some nice fruit. The acid seems a bit low at first, making the palate slightly dull – soft flavor of chocolate, with some hints of berries. This evolves a bit, with some acid emerging to lift the flavors. The center seems a bit closed – suggesting this may need some more time in the bottle. Still very lovely to drink right now. 92

Update – days 2 and 3 (no refrigeration or vacuum or other preservation used, and with day 3 having perhaps ½ inch in the bottle) this got better and even a bit more nuanced. The last bit on day 4 was still very pleasant. Everything is nicely integrated and smooth. I can definitely distinguish this from the syrahs – there is more bright fruit here, which is perhaps fitting for a Grenache. Very impressive. I am upping the score to 94 based on this multi-day performance.


I must say that this convinced me that I may enjoy the GOKs I have. I was a little worried that they were a slightly lighter or less interesting version of the syrahs, but this bottle suggests otherwise.