Tried this last night w/ dinner:
1. RosenblumCllrs Calif Syrah CoolClimate/BeatnikBlend HdR Cuvee (15%; Seguin-Moreau cooperage) 2002: Very dark color w/ no bricking; strong blackberry/Syrah slight peppery/herbal rather toasty/charred/Fr.oak very lush/ripe spicy nose; soft/smooth bit alcoholic/hot ripe/lush/blackberry/Syrah/boysenberry slight peppery strong toasty/charred/oak flavor w/ light/smooth tannins; long lush/smooth strong spicy/blackberry/Syrah strong toasty/charred/smokey/oak finish w/ slight hard/tannic aftertaste; a pretty classic lush Rosenblum wine; plenty of Syrah fruit and toasty oak but little cold-climate character; a Syrah that has come together quite nicely and probably not going to get much better or develop much complexity; drink up.
$36.00 (HdR)
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A wee BloodyPulpit:
1. This was a special blend that Kent (before he sold out to Diageo) put together, a one barrel lot, for the HdR auction. I believe JeffCohn was still his winemaker at that point in time. Not sure what vnyds he took from, but I'd suspect it was mostly RockPile.
Kent's wines (at Rosenblum) always had a classic "Rosenblum lushness" to them upon release. This was usually achieved by adding back a few % of the latest vintage just afore bottling. This meant that they oftentimes changed quite a bit in the btl over their first yr or so. Don't know if he/Shauna still use that technique at RockWall or not.
Tom