WTN: New Ojai White & Red..(short/boring)
Posted: Sun Dec 29, 2013 4:32 pmTried these two new releases that Fabien just sent me:
1. OjaiVnyd White Calif TW (13.5%; 120213) NV (2012): Med.light gold color; fairly fragrant Chard/SB light toasty/oak quite attractive perfumed nose; rather tart light oak floral/spicy Chard/R(?) bit tangy/grapefruity attractive flavor; med.short tart/tangy bit floral/R-like lean bit Chard/melony some austere finish; speaks mostly of Chard w/ interesting aromatics. $18.00
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2. OjaiVnyd Red Calif TW (14.5%; 120213) NV (2012): Med.dark color; rather earthy/smokey some Pinotish/black cherry some toasty/oak maybe a bit of blackberry rather strong nose; fairly tart strong blackberry/black cherry some toasty/oak flavor w/ fair tannins; long some smokey/toasty/oak strong black cherry/blackberry/Syrah-like slight earthy/dusty finish w/ some hard tannins; could use another yr and probably go out another 5-8 yrs; a distinctly Ojai red at a great price. $18.00
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A wee BloodyPulpit:
1. I've long been a fan of the Ojai White & Ojai Red. After they pump out the barrels into tank for an equalizing blend, the bottom of the barrel/leesy wine is run thru a filter to clarify it and then these leftovers are blended&bttld and sold at a stupid/silly price. It used to be there was nothing to indicate which batch/lot was in the btl. Several yrs ago, Adam started laser-etching on the btl the bottling date (in tiny print..you have to look hard to find it...not good for us old guys w/ poor eyesight) so now you can tell one batch from another. Don't know how many batches a yr they bttl up.
I recently had an OjaiRed circa 2007 that had about 5 yrs in btl that was a wonderful expression of Calif Pinot, the equivalent of many $40-$50 Calif Pinots. So I queried Fabien and found out they'd just btls some new White & Red, so ordered up a mixed case. These are from the latest lot.
The R & W are only sold via the WebSite or the Ojai TastingRoom. The Site indicates the white is sold out, but this should be available if you ask.
But, to paraphrase AdamGump..."The Ojai White and Ojai Red are like a box of chocolates...you never know what you're going to get". The Red sometimes speaks mostly of Syrah, sometimes mostly of Pinot. But they always speak strongly of OjaiVnyds and come at a great price.
In the FWIW category, the recent Calif Syrah '11 is an amazingly good Syrah at a great price.
Tom
1. OjaiVnyd White Calif TW (13.5%; 120213) NV (2012): Med.light gold color; fairly fragrant Chard/SB light toasty/oak quite attractive perfumed nose; rather tart light oak floral/spicy Chard/R(?) bit tangy/grapefruity attractive flavor; med.short tart/tangy bit floral/R-like lean bit Chard/melony some austere finish; speaks mostly of Chard w/ interesting aromatics. $18.00
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2. OjaiVnyd Red Calif TW (14.5%; 120213) NV (2012): Med.dark color; rather earthy/smokey some Pinotish/black cherry some toasty/oak maybe a bit of blackberry rather strong nose; fairly tart strong blackberry/black cherry some toasty/oak flavor w/ fair tannins; long some smokey/toasty/oak strong black cherry/blackberry/Syrah-like slight earthy/dusty finish w/ some hard tannins; could use another yr and probably go out another 5-8 yrs; a distinctly Ojai red at a great price. $18.00
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A wee BloodyPulpit:
1. I've long been a fan of the Ojai White & Ojai Red. After they pump out the barrels into tank for an equalizing blend, the bottom of the barrel/leesy wine is run thru a filter to clarify it and then these leftovers are blended&bttld and sold at a stupid/silly price. It used to be there was nothing to indicate which batch/lot was in the btl. Several yrs ago, Adam started laser-etching on the btl the bottling date (in tiny print..you have to look hard to find it...not good for us old guys w/ poor eyesight) so now you can tell one batch from another. Don't know how many batches a yr they bttl up.
I recently had an OjaiRed circa 2007 that had about 5 yrs in btl that was a wonderful expression of Calif Pinot, the equivalent of many $40-$50 Calif Pinots. So I queried Fabien and found out they'd just btls some new White & Red, so ordered up a mixed case. These are from the latest lot.
The R & W are only sold via the WebSite or the Ojai TastingRoom. The Site indicates the white is sold out, but this should be available if you ask.
But, to paraphrase AdamGump..."The Ojai White and Ojai Red are like a box of chocolates...you never know what you're going to get". The Red sometimes speaks mostly of Syrah, sometimes mostly of Pinot. But they always speak strongly of OjaiVnyds and come at a great price.
In the FWIW category, the recent Calif Syrah '11 is an amazingly good Syrah at a great price.
Tom