WTN: RAG Time (Edmunds St. John)

[David M. Bueker]

2000 Edmunds St. John Rocks & Gravel

This is exactly what I am looking for. For $18.99 I get a wine that is medium bodied, has fantastic balance of fruit (dark cherry, plum), acid, tannin and alcohol (very moderate). There's a touch of earth with the fruit, and the flavors just linger on my palate. It complements food (in this case a grilled lamb chop), and delivers so much more pleasure than you pay for that I have to call it a QPR King! As far as California goes it's a QPR Emperor!!

Excellent effort, and I think I will let my other bottle sleep a little longer, as there is plenty here for further development.

Great job Steve!

[James Roscoe]

Is this the gamay based wine David? I can never keep Steve's wines straight. The problem is we see so few of them on the east coast. I believe it's a conspiracy between Hoke, Lou and their protege, Rashaan to keep all the ESJ wines in California.

[David M. Bueker]

Nope...it's a blend of Rhone varieties.

[James Roscoe]

I still think Hoke, Lou, and Rashaan are behind the scarcity of ESJ wines on the east coast. Thanks for the info.

[David M. Bueker]

I'm trying to bring more to the east coast.

Some day when I am down in MD, we will have to get together, and I will bring an ESJ.

By the way, the back label says this wine is a blend of Grenache, Mourvedre and Syrah that may be "hard to distinguish" from its Rhone inspiration. Being a fan of both Steve's wines and Southern Rhones I would have to say that he is right on, except that I find Steve's wines a touch more fruit forward. If I had this alongside a Gigondas I think it would be hard to tell which was which. Again, bravo Steve!!

Is this the gamay based wine David? I can never keep Steve's wines straight

That would be "Bone Jolly" in reference to good old France.

He mostly works with Rhone grapes, although has branched out a bit.

You can see the list here: http://www.edmundsstjohn.com/TheWines/

[David M. Bueker]

Is this the gamay based wine David? I can never keep Steve's wines straight

That would be "Bone Jolly" in reference to good old France.

He mostly works with Rhone grapes, although has branched out a bit.

You can see the list here: http://www.edmundsstjohn.com/TheWines/

You know (in reference to that thread on eGobsofhedonisticfruit.com) if Steve feels the need to "focus" his portfolio, I hope and pray that he keeps all the Rhone varieties. The wines are just too good. (I like the others as well, but the R&G/LRV and Syrahs are wines I really cannot do without.)

if Steve feels the need to "focus" his portfolio, I hope and pray that he keeps all the Rhone varieties. The wines are just too good.

I agree. Personally I'm most fanatic about Syrah, but that's just my mono-cepage taste in general. I think Steve's passion for the GSM blend is too high to drop the Rhone wines.

I still think Hoke, Lou, and Rashaan are behind the scarcity of ESJ wines on the east coast. Thanks for the info.

And I snag any that make across the border into Arizona!

In other words, you take care of the, um, surplus?

In other words, you take care of the, um, surplus?

Yup! Quite happily!

[James Roscoe]

I still think Hoke, Lou, and Rashaan are behind the scarcity of ESJ wines on the east coast. Thanks for the info.

And I snag any that make across the border into Arizona!

So it's a four man conspiracy! I will have to get Steve to ship some to my friends in Virginia. That ought to solve the immediate problem. I will get on the website this weekend.

Actually, James, locally, MacArthur has the 2003 Rocks and Gravel on sale $16; I'm adding it to my list.

[James Roscoe]

Bruce, I can never find MacArthurs. I go to C-W's all the time. I live over in the wine desert that is PG Co, MD.

I live in the even worse wine desert of Montgomery (county monopoly and all). Anyway, it's a little farther than C-W but I like their selection a lot more and most of the time, their prices are a dollar or so less (at least during their fall wine sales). It's on MacArthur Blvd. in the 4800 block -- I'm sure you could get directions over the Internet. The thing is, the store isn't that large, so they don't always have all wines advertised on hand (I believe they have off-site storage) so I make a point of going through their catalogue and emailing my order a couple of days before I go in to pick it up -- that way, it's all ready for me.