Had a '15 Pagani Ranch over the weekend, it was extremely delicious.
Nose is dusty OVZ; bramble fruits; blackberry/black cherry/zinberries; baking spice.
Palate is rich black and red fruit; berry pie; berry liqueur; broad spiced black fruit character. Long finish; low mid tannin; high side of low mid acidity; full body.
While this was the first bottle I’ve had, and so I can’t give a longitudinal comparison, I have the sense it has gentled a little with bottle age, but it is still plenty energetic.
2013 Carlisle Zinfandel Papera Ranch - USA, California, Sonoma County, Russian River Valley (5/4/2023)
Decanted off sediment for 30min and back to bottle for 2h.
Classic nose of mixed berry compote and mixed berry pie. Not much oak that I pick up, but definitely a rich and "thick" nose. Palate is an absolute explosion of blueberry and blackberry. Certainly full bodied but there is nice acidity that pushes things forward. Not a ton of tannin but my gums had subtle dryness. Finish had some cola notes and a little bit of drying fruit and aged wood. This is drinking extremely young and probably has another 10 to 15 years ahead. Like it a lot, and it is still opening up in the glass despite the decant.
92-93 and will complex further with time. (93 points)
In the glass garnet with a pink rim, moderately clear.
On the nose a huge attack of rich RRV blue and black fruit; mixed-berry pie; orange peel; dusty OV earth; baking spice; and a tiny bit of Fr. oak.
On the palate, the wine is silky in texture; full bodied; m acid; m or m- tannin; + alc (15%, not hot but certainly warm, integrates fine with the wine and not bothersome). Some red fruit joins the blue/black on the palate; ultra concentrated dark berry fruit; hint of orange liqueur/Cointreau vibe(?). Finish is m with some black tea added to the mix.
Beautiful wine, still quite primary, still quite energetic, IMO no rush but drinking well.
Popped open the 2018 Pagani Zin tonight and I’m so happy. So fresh, so tasty, so bright, and with all the depth. I’ve realized that I most enjoy Carlisle zins in adolescence. Possibly because I lack the willpower to let them age further, but this one confirms my bias. Really good stuff as ever.
Really good and similar to my last bottle. Tastes like a hypothetical mix of petite sirah, zin, and syrah. Big fruit and crazy dark color but almost a medium bodied frame which surprises you based on how the wine looks in the glass. Fun wine and scratches the itch when I want a Carlisle but something a little different
Had a 16’ Papera last night with grilled chicken, damn that juice went down too quick. The Carlisle orders need to get bigger each time, space be damned.
