SLONYC 2- Shiraz that don't suck. notes and recollections.

1992 Penfolds Grange. Crumbly cork. Still dark with nary a inkling of age. A nose of flower petals, lavender and calla-lilies which only got better as this sat in my glass for an hour plus. The palate had a wonderful depth of fruits: some black cherry, creme de cassis, and red plum. There was a lilty graphite note which was meshed beautifully with some lavender, tar, and earth, good earth that is. An extremely elegant, delicate and lovely wine with super balance and class. A minute plus on the back. This came out of the gate a winner and never fell behind. Wow. WOTF & WOTN. 95

2003 Mitolo GAM. This started with a candied nose, with blackberries and pomegranate. Great balance, nice mid weight mouth feel with dark cherries wrapped in semi sweet chocolate & some dark plums. There was a note of oregano as this sat in the glass. A very pretty well structured Shiraz with a hint of black pepper. Wonderfully resolved tannins. 90

2000 Elderton Command. A very nice dark color with some pretty dark fruits of blackberry, black cherry, black plums and blueberry pie. A little oak was detectable. This had a great mouthfeel which as it sat in the glass, and tasted against the Mitolo, seems a bit simple, but still enjoyable, and I have always found these consistent with delivering the Shiraz goods. 89

The Blind wine was a 2003 Cayuse, I think….
This was surely out of its ‘continental’ bearings, and screamed California or Washington. I always enjoy these, and this may have shown better in SLONYC 1. Thanks Mark for bringing this second bottle for the group.

2002 Shirvington. I liked this out of the gate, but I have always been known as a bit of a contrarian. This had some very intense elements that shot from the glass. Some blueberries, some black cherries, some pomegranate. As it sat in my glass, it did become noticeably hotter. It started nicely balanced and crashed quickly. Not the groups favorite, and some even hated it, but hate is such a bad word… 87

2002 DeLille Cellars Syrah Doyenne. A mistake bring, but interestingly enough, it fit the octagonal hole more than the other Washington State wine. Nice deep red fruit profile and an interesting graphite/sulphur note which I actually think added to the overall feel of this mid-weight, elegant, and very pretty wine. Some vanilla, some black cherries, and a hint of warm blueberry cobbler. A very strong finish makes this a winner. 90

2003 Ox. Hmmm. Ox huh? This small producer really shined last big last night. This was the nights mind bender to me. It had a very pure and clean style that was a nice welcome in this night’s line-up. A dark fruit profile of cassis, blackberry, super black plum, tar, earth, leather, and blueberry. The midpalate was like a secondary wall of all the same, just intensified. Wow. I loved how this traveled across the spectrum of the tongue. A nicely structured and masculine wine with tons of backbone and weight, but yet balanced and satisfying. Say it again, Ox. The groups WOTF-- Mine too. 93

2004 Dead Arm, 2004 Amon Ra, and 2006 Mollydooker Velvet Glove. This whole flight seems similar to me in the sense of over extraction and cloying sweetness. The Molly stood out from this group for me. It had an intense bruised blue fruit profile that seemed to sit above the sweetness. A nice big mouth feel with some chewy tannins and pure acid balance. It was the WOTF….for me. Only me.

The Amon Ra was the groups WOTF.