Boredom from Stags Leap? Damn.
Chris and I are watching LOST on dvd on a Sat. night. To kick the evening up a notch (Saturday should have a little more verve than Tuesday or Wednesday, right?) I open a bottle of special wine.
At least I thought it would be special. I was allured by the the "Stags Leap" label on the Cameron Hughes Lot 16 2004 Cabernet Sauvignon Stags Leap District. I love wines from the Stags Leap area of Napa, and I really wanted to love this one.
I don't.
At first taste, I thought this wine was overly tannic but that was just my impatience; I hadn't given it ample time to breathe. 15 minutes later, I was LONGING for tannins. At least something interesting would've been happening in my mouth. This wine was a sleeper. It had promise with beautiful ruby color and and strong aroma of blueberry, mashed cherry and light vanilla. There was something merlot-like in the scent, enough to make me double check the label.
But color and aroma are only foreplay. Like a really hot guy who just lays there in bed, this wine didn't put out where it matters. Chris says its very "one-note". I got a little bit of cherry and berry but not much else. It's slightly chalky with a sweet but chemical aftertaste like nutrasweet. This wine would benefit from aging but I'm not sure I'd waste the storage space. Alder at Vinography gives this wine a 7.5/8 out of 10. I usually respect Alder's opinion, but I think he's being overly generous with a negociant that he admires.
posted by ed @ 11:07 PM
3 Comments:
Ed,
Perhaps you like more tannic wines?
from my notes: ..this wine offers a silky finish without a tannin in sight. Obviously, this wine is meant to be enjoyed young.
I was quite a bit more generous with this bottle, giving it a rating of 90, which is an A-/B+.
Jathan,
Thanks for responding.
You are right that I prefer more tannic wines. I crave BIG reds, and tannins are certainly a part of that infatuation. But really, what is the point of a California Cabernet without tannins? Isn't that part of the very character of a CalCab? Isn't that why we choose cabernet to pair with a porterhouse? Isn't that why we will open a $50 bottle to pair with a $7 bacon burger?
By the way... love your blog. I appreciate that you writing offers more than just descriptions of wine flavors (voluptious, velvety, cherry, earthy gets so mundane after awhile). This top 5 list was creative, convincing (you got me to open my mind to trying other Cameron Hughes wines), and it just got you bookmarked.
Thanks.
Ed,
Thanks for the kind words. You make some good points about Cabernet and tannins. However, I'm sure you'd agree if all Cabernet's had the same tannic structure, it would get kind of boring. I'm a fan of hearty young reds that can stand up to beef, but I also enjoy opening less pronounced reds with pastas, cheeses, and the like, which I guess is where this wine fits in.
Anyway, keep up the good work. (You're all linked up btw.)
Cheers.
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