Submitted by
MSherman on Thu, 2006-08-17 21:37.
I jumped at the chance to make wine in the fall of '04, choosing a Cabernet from Stagecoach Vineyard/Pritchard Hill as the wine to fuel my passions. I tasted barrel samples at regular intervals, but this spring, I decided I wanted to make a blend (Chemistry degree rearing its head once again). Winemaker Kian Tavakoli helped me narrow down the choices and we decided to blend in a bit of Teldeschi Vnyd. Petite Sirah. The blend was made immediately to allow the wines to integrate and Flying Wine Cellars '04 Napa Valley Cabernet was bottled about 2 months later.
I had a case of wine shipped to me and held off on tasting as long as I possibly could (a week!). Two years in the making -- anxiety was setting in! I pulled the cork and decanted for 1-2 hours prior to dinner. As it warmed up, the nose became very pronounced with milk chocolate and coffee aromas. I poured it into our glasses.
In the immortal words of The Searchers, "I held my nose, I closed my eyes, I took a drink....."
It was love at first sip!
The results were fantastic and the blend has created a wonderful depth of flavors and nuances. Served with grilled lamb chops and ratatouille. I'm thrilled. Next question --Can we recreate this with my 2005 Stagecoach Cab?
