Did a pobega on these two wines this weekend:
1. Drew PinotNoir Gatekeepers/MendoRidge (13.2%; Valenti&Perli vnyds; 60% Clone 667/25% Clone 777/
15% RochioliClone; 15% whole cluster; 100% native yeast ferment; 10% new Fr.oak; Drk: now-2019: JD)
Elk 2012: Med./med.light color; light toasty/smokey/oak some earthy/mineral strong black cherry/PN/RCCola rather attractive nose; rather tart/lean/austere strong black cherry/PN/RCCola/black cherry cola light smokey/oak/toasty/cinammon flavor w/ light/firm tannins; very long tart/lean/tight strong black cherry/PN/cola/RCCola light smokey/oak finish w/ light/hard tannins; a rather tightly-wound/lean/structured/bit underripe Pinot that needs several yrs of age to show much. $27.20
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2. Drew TheOrnbaun MendoRidge (13.9%; 58% PerliVnyd/42% ValentiVnyd; 80% Syrah/Clones #1, #877, McDowell;
16% Zin; 4% Viognier; 12% whole cluster; Drk: now-2019: JD) 2012: Med.dark color; strong blueberry/blackberry/Syrah slight peppery/DrPepper quite spicy/bit thyme very light smokey/oak interesting nose; rather tart/lean/tight strong blueberry/blackberry/Zin/raspberry/spicy/blueberry/Syrah quite spicy/DrPepper/root beer/thyme light smokey/toasty/oak flavor w/ modest/tight/hard tannins; very long tart/lean/austere rather spicy/thyme strong blueberry/Syrah/bit raspberry/blackberry/Zin finish w/ some hard/spikey tannins; a rather tart/tangy red that speaks as much of Zin as of Syrah; quite an interesting blend that needs several yrs of age. $26.50
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A wee BloodyPulpit:
1. These are the wines of Jason&Molly Drew. Followed 'em from the very start...down in SantaBarbara..where his big/extracted Syrahs first caught my attention. Since they moved up to Elk in MendocinoCnty, his style has undergone a significant shift; towards lower alcohols, more refinement...favorites of the IPOB crowd.
Both of these wines had plenty of flavors & aromatics; yet they were not a lot of pleasure to drink, at least at this point in time. They were rather tightly-wound/austere on the palate and hard some pretty hard tannins. My suspicion is that these will be much better wines w/ 3-5 yrs and maybe go out ten. OTOH...maybe the guy in Monktown is right, after all??
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2. Ornbaum: This name refers to the soil type that is prevalent up on the MendocinoRidge.
Tom
