Tried these two at dinner last night:
1. Renwood Syrah AmadorCnty (15%; #533 of 67 cs) 1991: Very dark color w/ slight bricking; strong blackberry/boysenberry/Syrah/ripe/framboise some Amador/briary slight alcoholic very light oak rather primary nose; soft slight tangy/metallic some Amador/briary/blackberry/Syrah/ripe bit alcoholic flavor w/ light astringent/bitter tannins; med.long soft/fat rather briary/Amador/blackberry/Syrah slight complex finish w/ light/bitey tannins; still has plenty of Amador/briary fruit; rather primary on the nose but somewhat hard/drying/tannic on the palate.
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2. JosephSwan Le Vin du Mystere SonomaVlly RTW (Hillside vnyd > 100 yrs old; Varieties= a mystery; 96 cs) 1991: Dark color w/ some bricking; very strong dusty/OV somewhat plummy/licorice/blackberry/smokey/peppery/spicy fairly lush/fruity sorta Languedoc-like/earthy/stony rather complex nose; bit soft some tangy/metallic strong plummy/blackberry/black cherries/licorice/peppery bit Rhonish/smokey light toasty/smokey/oak flavor w/ light bitey/astringent tannins; med.long soft bit tangy/metallic/drying strong plummy/licorice/black cherry/ripe slight Rhonish/smokey bit cedary/pencilly/oldRed somewhat complex finish w/ light drying tannins; quite an interesting wine that speaks mostly of OV Mourvedre. $16.50
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A wee Bloody Pulpit:
1. These two wines were from my orphan stash in the garage; stored standing upright in totally uncontrolled temperature conditions. They should have been dead & gone. They were not.
The Swan Vin du Mystere is a mystery to me. I seem to recall it was a one-of. Tasted a lot like Mourvedre to me. Not sure what vnyd the grapes were from. A mystery, indeed.
Tom
