Went out to dinner with friends at a local haunt we usually take our own wine to, and I took two wines that I didn't think I still had but discovered this weekend when I was doing some cellar management. In both cases, had I known I had them I'd have made a point of drinking them earlier and gifting them away respectively, but as it turns out in both cases I'm glad they escaped earlier elimination.
2002 Coudelet de Beaucastel
Now you know why I didn't think I still had this--who bought 02's in the first place, and who hung onto them this long? Where this wouldn't be anybody's idea of a great Rhone, for an 02 it's showing particularly well. Light to medium red color, it's an aging CdP Lite and almost beaujolais-ish--tasty red fruit, tea, orange rind. Tannins are mostly resolved but it still has good acidity, and it was an excellent food wine that went surprisingly well with everybody's seafood dishes. I saved the following for after dinner:
2003 Rosenblum Syrah, England-Shaw Vineyard, Solano County
Several years ago, in a fit of affection for the Rosenblums I used to love I bought this wine from afar only to find out when I opened the first bottle that I had purchased an almost-16% liquid blueberry clafouti. Time has been good to it: it has shed the custurdy blue baby fat, and the acidity that wasn't apparent before gives it a fresher, black fruit kind of balance with a sweet lemonade tang, a hint of sage and some interesting secondary nuances starting to develop. The alcohol, though still evident is less problematic, and if I had just one more bottle I'd bet on it reaching it's peak in about three years.