2016 Dirty and Rowdy Mourvèdre Skinner Stoney Creek Vineyard - USA, California, Sierra Foothills, El Dorado County (5/17/2023)
Sometimes I get in a happy rut of drinking Hardy Wallace’s wines. After the luscious security blanket of the 2018 Evangelho I decided to open the 2016 Skinner Stony Creek. Now that’s a change of pace! First off this wine has some teeth. Yeah they have been filed down a touch, but there’s still structure to spare. The fruit is red and juicy, and there is a wild, game meat on an open fire note that lingers through the finish. It gets earthier the longer it’s open, as Mourvèdre goes back to its base incarnation. Lots of time to spare with this bottling. It needs some time to mellow out a little. There’s plenty of depth for the wait.