I confess!
Posted: Wed Sep 20, 2006 10:31 pmI'm a Coffaro-aholic.
There. I've done it!
David Coffaro's "Block 4" is a genuine field blend from a little patch in his little vineyard that was planted somewhere between World War 1 and Prohibition. Those vines are older than most people. And they look the part! <g>
I suspect that what David puts on the label for cepage is pretty much guesswork. He's told me that he doesn't know what each vine in the block is, There are at least two white grape vines, or vines that produce grapes that look like white grapes, at least.
So when I read "57% Zin, 23% Petite Syrah, 10% Peloursin, 5% Carignan, 5% Syrah" for the 2004 vintage "40% Zin, 26% Petite Syrah, 22% Peloursin, 7% Carignan, 5% Syrah" for the 2003 vintage and "40% Petite Syrah, 40% Zin, 20% other" for the 2001 vintage (I didn't buy any '02) I don't feel cheated. I put it down to additional effort in identifying each vine, combined with variations in yield from year to year.
Tonight was my first taste of the '04 vintage, with macaroni and cheese for supper, and it was a delight. The color and aroma are Zin all the way. But it's slower to develop its taste in the entry, and remarkably lush, with twice the length that one would expect given its ripeness. Had I not been looking at the bottle, I'd have said Zin with Cab. Quite long. Very clean finish. Not much in the way of tannin, which is in sharp contrast to the '01 vintage which was quite tannic last October. The '01 will live longer and come to show structure that this bottle doesn't offer.
The '04 is a superb drinking wine right now, and very reasonably priced at $18 on futures.
There. I've done it!
David Coffaro's "Block 4" is a genuine field blend from a little patch in his little vineyard that was planted somewhere between World War 1 and Prohibition. Those vines are older than most people. And they look the part! <g>
I suspect that what David puts on the label for cepage is pretty much guesswork. He's told me that he doesn't know what each vine in the block is, There are at least two white grape vines, or vines that produce grapes that look like white grapes, at least.
So when I read "57% Zin, 23% Petite Syrah, 10% Peloursin, 5% Carignan, 5% Syrah" for the 2004 vintage "40% Zin, 26% Petite Syrah, 22% Peloursin, 7% Carignan, 5% Syrah" for the 2003 vintage and "40% Petite Syrah, 40% Zin, 20% other" for the 2001 vintage (I didn't buy any '02) I don't feel cheated. I put it down to additional effort in identifying each vine, combined with variations in yield from year to year.
Tonight was my first taste of the '04 vintage, with macaroni and cheese for supper, and it was a delight. The color and aroma are Zin all the way. But it's slower to develop its taste in the entry, and remarkably lush, with twice the length that one would expect given its ripeness. Had I not been looking at the bottle, I'd have said Zin with Cab. Quite long. Very clean finish. Not much in the way of tannin, which is in sharp contrast to the '01 vintage which was quite tannic last October. The '01 will live longer and come to show structure that this bottle doesn't offer.
The '04 is a superb drinking wine right now, and very reasonably priced at $18 on futures.