WHAT'S NEW ACHIVES
Spring
Mountain
A New Wine Region Rises High Above the Napa Valley
by Amy Wolf
Sunset Magazine September 2005
You might imagine that Steve Russon, a Napa Valley tour guide and self-professed
wine geek, would get tired of taking groups around to wineries. And you would
be right, at least when it comes to “the usual suspects, the no-brainers,”
as he calls some of the larger wineries along State 29. But there’s
one appellation that continues to fascinate him no matter how many times he
goes. “I like to bring people up to Spring Mountain because it takes
a little more effort, a little more study and knowledge,” Russon says.
Effort, because all the wineries here require appointments for tasting. Knowledge,
because all are hidden among the trees along a rugged, winding road so steep
it can make your ears pop. So why bother? As Russon puts it, “Spring
Mountain is undeniably, incomparably beautiful; the wines have beautiful intensity;
and you get to talk to people who are involved in what they’re doing,
have a stake in what they’re doing, and are actually doing it themselves.”
Paloma’s Barbara and Jim Richards.
photo credit: Martin Sundberg
Off the map—and off the charts
One of the Napa Valley’s smallest appellations, with fewer than 20 wineries
and 25 vineyards, Spring Mountain is in many respects the anti-Napa. Until
just last year, when a Spring Mountain District Association finally formed,
wineries here operated as lone rangers, with minimal signage and directions
almost laughable in their folksiness: “Where the road turns to dirt,
look for the cluster of mailboxes, turn right, and 500 yards down you’ll
see a gate with no sign. If you can’t find it, try calling the winery.
If you get lost, call us, though your cell phone might not work out here."
But wine lovers know that Spring Mountain’s remoteness, besides making
it so refreshingly untrafficked, is a big part of what makes the wines so
good. Tom Ferrell, general manager and former winemaker at Spring Mountain
Vineyard, explains that because Spring Mountain is not in fact a mountain
but rather a ridge between two mountains, the area has its own weather patterns.
It’s the coolest, wettest place in the Napa Valley, with an average
rainfall of 37 inches a year. Springs appear everywhere after a good rain,
hence the area’s name. And with all the trees, it feels more like the
coast than like farmland. “We’re about as far east as you’ll
find redwood trees,” Ferrell says.
Moisture and mountains don’t always add up to great wine. Weak soils,
which are the norm at these elevations, stress the grapes, forcing them to
stay small, with a higher skin-to-grape ratio. As a result, mountain wines
tend to be more concentrated and intense—sometimes too much so.
But on Spring Mountain, this effect is softened by the more gradual temperature
fluctuations that the surrounding, taller mountains provide. “As a result,
our wines have the bright color and intensity that mountain wines are often
known for, but also a softness and elegance that surprises wine critics,”
Ferrell explains.
Surprising indeed. In 2003 Wine Spectator’s prestigious Wine of the
Year award went to a Merlot—in itself a surprise. And this particular
Merlot was from Paloma Vineyard, possibly the most down-home winery in the
entire Napa Valley.
“A mountain vineyard is totally different than a valley vineyard,”
says Paloma co-owner Barbara Richards, who, at 70-plus years old, carries
a shovel to combat rattlesnakes when she drives her ATV. “Down there
they can pick a 15-acre vineyard in one day because it all ripens evenly,”
she says. “Here we pick by taste. We did 13 picks last year; it took
a month. That makes a much more complex wine.”
Barbara and her husband, Jim, moved here from Texas to retire in the 1980s
and have been tending their 15-acre vineyard ever since. They work seven days
a week, nine hours a day. Net outcome: 2,500 cases of wine, predominantly
Merlot, every year—and a not-so-relaxing retirement.
“When you get us all together in the same room, we’re really an
odd group,” Tom Ferrell says of the motley cast of characters you’ll
meet up here. “You’ve got one person in designer jeans and someone
else just off a tractor in boots.”
The scenery is just as varied as the personalities. In the span of only a
few miles, you go from asphalt to dirt, from Scottish castle to chicken coop,
from vineyards to redwood trees, from one county to another.
“The whole area is full of surprises like that,” Steve Russon
says. “As adults, we don’t get enough surprises. That’s
why I love it here.”
Online:www.sunset.com
Published: September 2005
Paloma
Vineyard invites you to join us at:
The Family Winemakers of California 2005 Tasting
Where:
Fort Mason,
San Francisco
When:
Sunday, August 21, 12:00, Consumer & Trade Welcome
Monday, August 22, 12:00, Trade Only
Connoisseurs' Guide to California Wine
March 2005, Merlot pg. 81
PALOMA
2002 Merlot-Spring Mountain District Napa Valley
Score: 93, Two
Puffs
Review:
Here is a tight but delicious Merlot whose mountain-side grapes have contributed
a level of sinew not often seen in the variety. Its aromas start off with
expected notes of ripe red cherries before picking up more concentrated suggestions
of currants and black cherries. In the mouth, it currently shows less of Merlot's
early juiciness and, instead, relies on the depth of its still nascent fruit
as the convincing offset to its blanket of youthful tannins. This one will
reward cellaring.
Robert M. Parker, Jr.'s
The WINE ADVOCATE
February 28, 2005
Issue 157
PALOMA 2002 MERLOT NAPA ($50.00)
Score: 90
PALOMA 2002 SYRAH NAPA ($45.00)
Score: 90
Review(s):
Paloma's 2002 Merlot is a worthy successor to their brilliant 2001, but it
is not as rich, complex, or deep as the latter vintage. The dense ruby/purple-tinged
2002 possesses lovely aromas of chocolate-infused coffee intermixed with berry
and currant fruit. This lush, medium to full-bodied Merlot is ideal for drinking
now and over the next 7-8 years.
Even better is the 2002 Syrah (which I believe will be the final vintage of
this cuvee). It boasts an inky/purple color in addition to a big, sweet nose
of blackberries, licorice, currants, and smoke. Opulently-textured, ripe,
and hedonistic, this is a Syrah to enjoy over the next 5-7 years.
Knocked Sideways
Merlot is suddenly uncool -- but the great ones still shine
San Francisco Chronicle, W. Blake Gray, Chronicle Staff Writer
Thursday, February 24, 2005
Wine is more than a part of dinner -- for many people, it's a fashion statement.
And no varietal is more vulnerable to the vagaries of coolness than Merlot.
In less than 15 years, Merlot blossomed from a subservient blending partner
for Cabernet Sauvignon to its current status as America's most popular red
wine. Many oenophiles have turned up their noses since the mid-1990s, when
"a glass of Merlot" became synonymous, for casual drinkers, with
a glass of red wine. But sales never stopped rising, and Merlot passed Cabernet
as America's best-selling red wine in 2000, according to the Wine Institute.
Now everything has changed, thanks to just two lines in the movie "Sideways."
In a much-quoted scene, the wine snob character Miles tells his easygoing
friend Jack before a double-date dinner: "If anyone orders Merlot, I'm
leaving. I am not drinking any f -- Merlot."
Suddenly, America's favorite red wine is also its most uncool.
Merlot sales are still rising overall, but AC Nielsen reported some early
warning signs of a possible reversal Monday: the percentage of households
buying it is down 2 percent compared to a similar 12-week period a year ago;
repeat purchases of Merlot are down 3 percent.
I admit, part of me cheers this development. There are a lot of lousy Merlots
made in California, and in researching this story, I tasted dozens of bland,
vegetal, over-oaked and overpriced wines. If a falling market pressures many
farmers to replant with varietals more suited to their terroir, I'm in favor
of it.
But when Merlot is good, it's wonderful in a way no other varietal can achieve.
A great Merlot is gentle, yet fruity; easy to drink, yet elegant and interesting.
It can be as generic as supermarket jug wine -- in fact, the so- called international
style of red wines is based largely on the taste of Merlot. But a great Merlot
can also be as complex as the finest Cabernet, without the formidable tannins
or the necessity of bottle aging for decades.
"It's Cabernet without the punishment," says Sebastiani Vineyards
and Winery winemaker Mark Lyon, who makes what I think is the best Merlot
in current release in California.
Beginner-friendly wine
Merlot achieved rapid prominence because at its best, it's the easiest fine
wine for novices to appreciate. It's ironic that these are now the very consumers
who won't let friends overhear them ordering it.
Katie Couric said on NBC's "Today Show" that she's heard she's not
supposed to drink Merlot. A New York City waiter posted an entry on the blog
waiterrant.blogspot.com in which multiple patrons chastised him ("Haven't
you seen 'Sideways'?") when he told them the by-the-glass special was
Merlot.
Here's my favorite evidence of Merlot's fall from grace. An interview with
"Sideways" actress Virginia Madsen by writer Strawberry Saroyan
in the Jan. 16 edition of the New York Times includes the following passage:
"They brought out this wine and we were like, this is really good,
thinking it was the pinot as usual." It turned out to be a Merlot: horrors.
"If you saw it on a menu, you'd throw it across a room. It was a Merlot
from Malibu." Only connoisseurs could have such conviction.
Actresses can be forgiven for shallowness, but note the position of the quotes:
when the New York Times calls someone who would throw a good-tasting wine
across the room just because it's Merlot a "connoisseur," the grape
has an image problem.
Long a star in France
Though Cabernet Sauvignon is the star of France's Bordeaux region, Merlot
is actually the most-planted grape there, according to Bordeaux.com, the official
site of Bordeaux wines. Merlot ripens earlier, a welcome hedge for wineries
against autumn rains. In the bottle, its gentle qualities have long been prized
in top estates' blends to help tame Cabernet's tannins.
This is true all over the world -- most of the time, wines labeled Cabernet
Sauvignon also contain some Merlot, and vice versa. They go together like
Arnold Schwarzenegger (the Cab) and Maria Shriver (without whom he'd be unpalatably
harsh).
The wines of St.-Emilion and Pomerol, on Bordeaux's right bank, are based
largely on Merlot, but consumers are mostly unaware of this because Bordeaux
wineries don't usually list varietals on the label.
In fact, the wine that Miles most treasured in "Sideways," Chateau
Cheval Blanc, is a blend of Merlot and another varietal he slams, Cabernet
Franc. The filmmakers originally wanted Miles' fetish wine to be Chateau Petrus
Pomerol, the world's most sought-after (and most expensive) Merlot.
"Quite a few film scripts cross my desk and I vaguely recall 'Sideways'
asking for permission to use Petrus," Christian Moueix, who runs Chateau
Petrus, said by fax. "I am afraid that at that time, I found the script
unexciting and declined."
Oops. Petrus doesn't need the extra publicity, but Merlot could have used
the ironic balance.
Merlot was practically unknown to Americans until the 1970s. Louis M. Martini
winery released California's first post-Prohibition bottle labeled Merlot,
a proletarian non-vintage, in 1972. In 1982, fewer than 2,500 acres of Merlot
were planted statewide, less than now-obscure Rubired and about 1/25th of
the acreage of then-leader French Colombard, according to the California Agricultural
Statistics Service.
Dan Duckhorn, whose Duckhorn Wine Co. is one of California's best sources
of fine Merlots year after year, says when he released his first vintage in
1980, the lack of competition made it easy to market.
"When you walked into a store with it, they wanted it because there wasn't
much Merlot available," says Duckhorn, 66.
A raft of stories with headlines like "Merlot: A New California Phenomena"
(May 6, 1987, The Chronicle) made it trendy. Wine lovers clamored to try it;
growers rushed to plant it.
That's where the problem started -- a problem Pinot Noir will surely face
in a few short years.
"When Merlot became popular, they grew it everywhere," says Pride
Mountain Vineyards winemaker Bob Foley. "There's an ocean of Merlot out
there, and a lot of it is not very good."
California was not alone in rushing to satisfy Americans' thirst for "a
glass of Merlot." It is also widely planted in Washington and New York
states, not to mention Italy, Chile and Australia. I recently clicked on "Merlot"
at bevmo.com, the online sales branch of Beverages & More, and was offered
a choice of 230. A similar click on "Pinot Noir" came up with only
90. This year.
"Merlot has been dropping in sales," says Wilfred Wong, e-commerce
cellarmaster for Beverages & More. "The trend has already been set.
Syrah has really been gaining and so has Pinot Noir. As the movie ("Sideways")
comes out in DVD, it will continue."
By-the-glass sales strong
However, a random survey of Bay Area sommeliers turned up a surprising shared
conclusion: Every one said that while Pinot Noir sales are rising, Merlot
sales by the glass aren't falling sharply yet. Cabernet Sauvignon is taking
more of a hit here, not a bad thing as Cabernet doesn't match food as well
as light-bodied Pinot or gentle Merlot. The rest of the country is different.
"Where we're really seeing it is in our restaurant in New York, Per Se,"
says Paul Roberts, wine director for the Thomas Keller restaurant group that
includes the French Laundry in Yountville. "I always thought for a long
time, with Merlot and Chardonnay, people didn't know what they were ordering.
They were ordering a beverage. Now they're ordering Pinot Noir that way. In
New York, in what you'd call B-level restaurants, you used to need Merlot
by the glass. Now you need Pinot Noir."
Full confession time -- if I could only drink one varietal the rest of my
life, it would be Pinot Noir, not Merlot. With Merlot, there is arguably an
Apollonian ideal flavor -- soft, juicy cherry and blueberry fruit with hints
of chocolate, leather and some tobacco on the finish. Pinots, on the other
hand, can taste strongly of anything from wild strawberries to horse sweat,
and still be fascinating.
However, because of small yields and the grape's negative reaction to high-volume
winemaking techniques, not many Pinot Noirs under $20 are good, as Americans
will soon discover. In contrast, three of the best 10 Merlots from California
that I tasted cost $20 or less.
Merlot has other advantages. Pinot Noir and Cabernet Sauvignon are prized
by collectors because they're thought-provoking wines, but there's always
some nervousness over exactly when to open them. Has your trophy Cab peaked
at 10 years, or should you wait another decade?
In contrast, most Merlots are ready to drink upon release. If you age them
at all, five to seven years is usually enough.
"One of the great things about a great bottle of Merlot is you don't
ever feel like you're robbing the cradle," says Scott Tracy, sommelier
at La Toque restaurant in Rutherford. "You're not punished for waiting
five years, and you're not punished for drinking it now."
Many oenophiles used to claim Merlot didn't have the high-end potential of
Cabernet or Pinot. Wine Spectator magazine changed that impression in 2003
when it named the 2001 Paloma Spring Mountain District Merlot its Wine of
the Year -- the first Merlot to receive the influential magazine's highest
stamp of approval.
"Everybody agreed that the Paloma was such a phenomenal wine," says
Wine Spectator senior editor James Laube. "It was an opportunity to show
what could be done with Merlot in California. It was unusual, but that was
all the more reason to single it out."
While Merlot can be profound, that's not its everyday appeal. Lyon says Merlot
is his mother's favorite wine. "How many people's mothers like Merlot?"
Lyon asks, laughing. "Some people's palates don't like the taste of Cabernet.
Merlot gives them satisfaction."
Most cliches started as truths. "A glass of Merlot" became a substitute
for "a glass of red wine" for a very good reason -- few red wines
are better by themselves before a meal, or just as a cocktail. Starting at
the bar with a glass of a heavier wine, like Cabernet or Zinfandel, requires
subsequent wines to also be big and bold, or they will be overshadowed. However,
gigantic wines overpower most foods, so you're trapped.
Merlot's gentle nature makes it acceptable with a wide range of foods -- not
as wide as Pinot Noir, the default red-wine choice for difficult pairings,
but still good with anything from meatless fare ("It has a tobacco quality
that comes out nicely with vegetarian dishes," says Roberts) through
chicken to wild game. Many winemakers I spoke with like Merlot best with lamb.
Tracy said he often serves Merlot at La Toque with fish in red wine sauces.
Foley, Pride Mountain Vineyards' sole winemaker since its founding in 1992,
says Merlot's steep rise in popularity and sudden fall from grace is an American
phenomenon.
"The U.S. is kind of new to wine," says Foley, an East Bay native.
"There's a tendency to discover something and then overdo it. It happened
with white Zinfandel, it happened with Chardonnay."
Now, it's happening with Pinot Noir. Foley, who has been making Merlot since
his parents planted a family vineyard in Alamo in 1964, says he hasn't seen
"Sideways" and will brook no sweeping statements against Miles'
least- favorite grape.
"Anybody who doesn't like Merlot, try mine," says Foley. "If
you still don't like Merlot, that's fine."
More for the rest of us.
Hailing
a Cab
By Michael Franz, Washington Post
Wednesday, January 12, 2005; Page F05
Few big questions about wine permit a straightforward answer, but here's one
for you: What is the best wine made in the United States? To my mind and to
my taste, the clear answer is Cabernet Sauvignon from the Napa Valley. Sure,
one could make a case for other wines such as Pinot Noir from Oregon or Merlot
from Washington state. But if we lined up all the candidates in a massive
tasting, I could show you a hundred different Cabs from Napa that would reduce
all other contenders to mere pretenders. You'd leave that tasting with no
doubt of the supremacy of Napa Cabernet.
However, I bet you would also leave with some questions, because you would
have found not only general greatness in those hundred Cabs, but also a marvelous
array of distinctively different characters. Why do the wines taste so different
from one another? Why are they so disparate in structure and texture?
On deeper examination, you would find many partial answers to these questions,
but one of the most important would be this : The Napa Valley isn't just a
valley, but also the surrounding mountains. And the widely differing contours,
soils and microclimates of Napa's mountains make for many unique -- and uniquely
delicious -- wines.
Napa's Spring Mountain District offers a perfect starting point for exploring
the Valley's mountain subregions, which I plan to do on occasion in future
columns. It is a legally established American Viticulture Area (AVA) with
more than 30 wineries, and the wines provide an illuminating introduction
to the intricacies of mountain viticulture. The Spring Mountain viticulture
area rises from an elevation of 400 feet above the town of St. Helena to a
height of more than 2,100 feet near the Sonoma County line to the west. Spring
Mountain is part of the Mayacamas range, and the general slope of the appellation
slides from west to east. However, the AVA also includes exposures (or "aspects")
to the north, south and west as a result of erosion incisions carved by York
Creek as well as Sulphur and Ritchie creeks (which form the appellation's
southern and northern boundaries, respectively).
Topographical factors cause particular vineyards within the Spring Mountain
District to differ in terms of altitude, slope steepness and aspect. Soils
are also varied, running as deep as 40 inches above bedrock at some point
but as shallow as six inches at others. Basic materials are predominantly
volcanic or sedimentary. These soils tend to be poorer in nutrients and quicker
to drain than those found on the valley floor, resulting in modest grape yields
of about 2.3 tons per acre.
Temperatures
within the appellation vary according to altitude, but the viticulture area
as a whole has a significantly different climate than the valley floor, with
cooler days and warmer nights. This difference results from a temperature
inversion, which involves warm air from lower elevations rising in the afternoons
and evenings and being replaced by cooler air that rolls down from the mountains
(as well as fogs that are pulled in from the San Pablo Bay). The peak daytime
temperature up on Spring Mountain is often 10 to 15 degrees lower than on
the valley floor, yet ripening is aided by additional hours of sunshine, as
mountain vineyards are usually above the fogs that often shroud low-lying
sites.
Spring Mountain is home to slightly more than 1,000 acres of vines, with 90
percent devoted to red grapes. Bordeaux varieties predominate, as Cabernet
Sauvignon comprises 56 percent of planted acreage, and Merlot another 18 percent.
Dribs and drabs of other varieties make up the balance, with only Chardonnay
reaching the level of 5 percent. As a result, most of what you'll find on
store shelves from Spring Mountain will be either Cabernet, Merlot or a Cabernet-based,
Bordeaux-style blend. What you'll find in the bottle will be variable, of
course, due to differences in growing conditions and stylistic preferences
from producer to producer. However, my tasting experience suggests that Spring
Mountain reds really do cluster around an identifiable profile. On one hand,
they tend to be more densely concentrated and intensely flavored than wines
from the flats or lower slopes of Napa Valley. Yet they are notably softer
in texture, lower in acidity and easier to appreciate when young than the
reds of Howell Mountain, Mount Veeder or Diamond Mountain.
Top reds don't come cheap from any of Napa's districts, and Spring Mountain
is certainly no exception, because yields are low and vineyard work is tough
on high-altitude slopes. However, the best Spring Mountain reds are stunningly
delicious, and any largess you may retain from holiday gifts would be well
invested in one of the following beauties.
Recommended wines are listed in order of preference, with approximate
prices:
Spring Mountain Vineyard "Elivette" 2001 ($90):
A marvel of complexity and integration, this features gorgeous, ripe berry
fruit accented with notes of wood smoke and vanilla. Packed with flavor, but
soft and smooth in texture.
Cain Vineyard "Cain Five" 2001 ($90): Meaty and
robust, this is a dense wine with intense flavors that will gain softness
and complexity over the course of the next decade.
Paloma Merlot 2002 ($51): Think
Merlot can't rival King Cab? Think again after a sip of this baby, which combines
dark color and serious concentration with soft, succulent black plum fruit.
Pride Mountain Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon 2002 ($62): Expressive
aromas and intense blackberry flavors lead the way here, with subtle background
notes of vanilla and spicy oak.
Juslyn Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon 2001 ($85): Soft and
impressively complex, this features notes of plums, dark berries, mocha and
tobacco leaf.
Marston Family Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon 2001 ($65): This
is a whopper at 15.4 percent alcohol, yet it isn't remotely hot. The proportions
are just right, with lots of fine-grained tannins lending definition to the
deeply ripe blackberry fruit.
Robert Keenan Winery Cabernet Sauvignon Reserve 2001 ($79):
With fine balance between deeply flavorful fruit, ripe tannins, and smoky
oak, this is enjoyable now but likely to become even better with another two
years of aging.
Terra Valentine Wurtele Vineyard 2001 ($50): A classic Napa
Cab with strong fruit recalling blackberries and black cherries, this also
shows a distinctive Spring Mountain streak in the form of soft tannins and
relatively low acidity.
Frias Family Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon ($65): This is slow
to unwind but marvelous after a couple of hours, with deep, sweet fruit flavors
and just a little oak in the background.
Schweiger Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon "Dedication" 2000
($85): Dark and concentrated, with deep, intense flavors.
Lynch Vineyards Syrah 2002 ($65): Impressively powerful but
lacking complexity when first opened, this was actually better on its second
night, with tar and tobacco notes accenting ripe, dark berry fruit.
Barnett Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon 2002 ($60): A pretty
big wine at 14.2 percent alcohol, yet surprisingly delicate in flavor and
approachably soft in texture, even at this young age.
WINE
SPECTATOR
Wine: 2002 Paloma Merlot Spring Mountain District
December 31, 2004
Rating:
93
Price: $51
Review:
Jim and Barbara Richards follow their stunning 2001 (Wine Spectator’s
Wine of the Year in 2003) with this complex, elegant 2002 from their 15-acre
vineyard on a steep ridge on Spring Mountain in western Napa Valley. It includes
17 percent of estate cabernet Sauvignon. The wine is aged in a combination
of new and used French oak barrels for 19 months before release. 1,650 cases
made. —James Suckling.
WINE
SPECTATOR
Wine: 2002 Paloma Syrah Spring Mountain District
November 30, 2004
Rating:
93
Price: $42
Review:
This wine quickly accelerates, with smooth, rich wild berry, sage, mocha,
espresso bean and mineral flavors that are dense and concentrated, showing
but a glimpse of what lies ahead, as it sails on, relying on its fruit character
to carry a long, rich finish. Best from 2006 through 2012. 100 cases made.—J.L.
CALIFORNIA'S
CABERNET CONUNDRUM
James Laube, Wine Spectator, Nov. 15, 2004
2001 yields some exceptional wines, along with some that are less than
inspiring.
(Click here to read article)
Cabernet
Surprises in 2001
Letter from the editors, Wine Spectator, Nov. 15, 2004
Marvin R. Shanken & Thomas Matthews
California Cabernet enjoys another outstanding vintage in 2001. Senior editor
James Laube, who has been covering California wines for more than 20 years,
reports that’01 rivals the best vintages of the past decade for America’s
favorite red.
After tasting nearly 500 California Cabernets from 2001, Laube rates the vintage
93 points for Napa (better than 2000) and 87 points for Sonoma (the best since
1999). But there are some surprises from the vintage; some of the established
stars stumbled, and there are a few new names at the top of the quality mountain.
When was the last time you drank a Cabernet made by Paloma? Or a Schrader,
or D.R. Stephens? In 2001, these producers released wines that rated 95 points
or more. They are among the new stars of California Cabernet. And the best
news is that compared with many of the established names, they are reasonably
priced. Each of the aforementioned wines sells for less than $100.
WINE
SPECTATOR WEEKLY
Wine:2002
Paloma Syrah Spring Mountain District
Closing date: September 23, 2004
Rating: 93
Price: $42
Review:
This wine quickly accelerates, with smooth, rich wild berry, sage, mocha,
espresso bean and minerally flavors that are dense and concentrated, showing
but a glimpse of what lies ahead as it sails on, relying on its fruit character
to carry the long, rich finish. Best from 2005 through 2012.
From California.— J.L.
WINE
SPECTATOR
Wine:2002
Paloma Merlot Spring Mountain District
Closing date: September 2004
Rating: 93
Price: $51
Review:
A delicious Merlot that's a worthy successor to the stellar '01. Ripe, rich,
juicy and polished, with layers of currant, black cherry and plum that are
deeply concentrated, elegant and lively. A light overlay of toasty, mocha-scented
oak adds another flavor dimension, and the flavors linger on a long, zesty
aftertaste. Drink now through 2009. 1,650 cases made. From California.—J.L
