We tasted these guest wines at our Carlisle tasting at Pig+Fig last night:
1. DavidBruce Syrah Estate/SantaCruzMtns (13%; First DB Syrah; 32 cs) LosGatos 1996: Med.dark color w/ some bricking; slight musty/old wine that clears to light earthy some smokey/Rhonish/Syrah/c-c peppery very pencilly/cedary slight blackberry/Syrah fruit rather complex bit aged lovely nose; bit tart/tangy/slight metallic rather Rhonish/roasted/smokey some toasty/pencilly/oak some c-c/peppery/blackberry/Syrah bit drying/astringent complex flavor w/ modest drying tannins; very long bit drying finish that mimics flavor; a lovely complex some Rhonish complex nose but starting to dry out some on the palate; still a lovely old Syrah but is leaving the building by now.
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2. VincentArroyo PetiteSirah GreenwoodRanch/NapaVlly (14.9%; EB; 393 cs) Calistoga 2004: Very dark/near blaco color w/ slight bricking; slight musty/oldRed smell that persists overnight; some peppery/PS/bit licorice strong Am.oak/vanilla bit complex rather youthful PS nose; bit soft fairly intense strong vanilla/Am.oak strong licorice/PS/peppery/bit blackberry rather rustic/tannic bit complex flavor w/ ample rough tannins; long classic youthful PS finish that mirrors flavor; not showing much evolution & still quite youthful.
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More skitterfreak from TheBloodyPulpit:
1. I was a huge fane of the DavidBruce wines from the early '70's. His Chards were pretty much slammed w/ new Fr.oak but loads of richness. Sometimes veering into the grotesque side. Sorta the same w/ his Pinots. He also had White Riesling planted on his Estate and made a totally bizarre wine, slammed w/ a ton of new Fr.oak. It was soundly vilified by the wine writers of that era because it was not "Riesling", but I loved it. And I, of course, had the last laugh because it actually matured into a wine that resembled an old German Riesling w/ lots of petrol character, though still some oak evident.
David was the first to plant Syrah in the SCM. When I tried this first Syrah on release, I was blown away by it. One of the first cold-climate Syrahs in Calif. I continued to buy them when I could, though they were pretty rare. His Estate vnyd eventually succumbed to Pierce's & was totally replanted, but the retained a bit of the Syrah.
I've not tried the David Bruces for a number of yrs. He died some yrs ago & wife Jeneatte retained ownership & pretty much ran it into the ground, being more interested in her poodles than wine. She has also died I believe & I don't know who owns it now. The DB Website is not at all helpful & doesn't even mention that David has passed. But this Syrah was a wonderful trip down memory lane.
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2. Vincent Arroyo makes one of the best PS in Calif. They seem to age/last/exist forever. That said, they are like many Calif PSs. They "last"...but never seem to develop much in the way of complexity like many old reds. The Ridges are the exception to this rule. I'm skeptical that this wine will ever develop wonderful old bones...but just keep on existing.
Tom
