My business trip to Fairfield, CA wrapped up in the early AM Friday, so I drove up to Napa. I had made an appointment to visit Carole and Steve at Lagier Meredith, but had a few hours to kill, so I stopped in to say hi to Randy and Carrie at Napa Valley Wine and Cigar, then took a casual drive up the Silverado trail.
I had no agenda for the early part of the day, so on the spur of the moment I stopped at Mumm Napa. Their DVX line is much more interesting than the entry level (much drier too!), though the pricing for the 2006 and 2007 exceeds what I would pay for Pierre Peters or Cedric Bouchard NVs. They are getting there, but it’s still a work in progress to my palate. They also poured me a complimentary taste of the Santana Collection Brut which stretched the definition of Brut to its limits. Not my style.
The driveway to Lagier Meredith is not for the faint of heart. 1.5 miles of one lane switchbacks reminds me more of hiking than driving! Anyway, the payoff is fantastic. What a beautiful place Carole and Steve have up on the ridge line. The views across Napa and towards Sonoma are breathtaking. Hummingbirds swarm around the feeders, and hawks and vultures circle in the air above the vineyards and the valley.
After a quick tour of the top of the hill we sat down to taste through a bunch of the Lagier Meredith and Chester’s Anvil wines. We first sampled the 2009, 2008, 2005 and 2002 Lagier Meredith Syrah (Mount Veeder), and all I can say is that I was blown away by the wines. The depth and balance of all the wines was evident from my first sip, and the opportunity to taste the 2002 and 2005 alongside the younger wines made the evolutionary arc that much more apparent. The 2005 was incredibly floral (though they do 100% destemming), and the 2002 showed a more earthy (clean!) and leathery side while still retaining plenty of primary fruit. The 2008 showed more forward aromatics than the 2009, though both were mere infants that displayed more power than nuance when compared to the older wines. My recent bottles of the Syrah are just going to get buried!
The 2011 Chester’s Anvil Zinfandel, Hattori Hanzo (Cabernet Sauvignon based blend) and Malbec were also open for tasting, and I really liked all of them. The Zin showed distinct and powerful raspberry fruit that carried all the way through the wine. The Hattori Hanzo was all about Cabernet, with deep cassis fruit and firm tannin. The Malbec was very approachable, veering more to the Blackberry fruit end of the spectrum. All of the wines were well balanced and fun to taste. I grabbed two of each (among other things) to better follow them over the course of a meal/evening when I don’t have to spit each and every drop.
Thanks again to Carole and Steve for a really fun (and informative – I did ask some geeky questions) tasting!
