Black impenetrable non-staining and DAY-GLO PURPLE. Let me reiterate that: Absolutely black and not ruby or garnet at all just brilliant purple out to the edges but completely non-staining. Draw your own conclusions. Instant wax-candy nose blows off quickly to the fried-banana-with-a-scoop-of-vanilla-ice-cream bouquet which continues throughout. Burnt licorice and gamy ripe cherry come exploding out with the ample alcohol.
Knowing the traits of this producer, I purposely had my girlfriend cut the ABV off the label upon purchase. I guess 16-0. This thing is just SOOOO young. A fairly simple but extremely ripe fruit washes over the tongue with high-note burnt-rubber and electrical fire notes and positively CHEWY tannins taking over almost immediately.
No indication on label of Tempranillo or Tannat proportions, but you can totally see everything working together here. It screams of mid-level Madiran or even something from the Canary Islands. Quite a balanced wine, actually–if you can get past the cloying infantilism and wracking tannin. I LOVE me some Tannat, and this bottle does not displease. I just have a hard time drinking them this young and the alcohol spooks me a bit, but it’s balanced!… so? Where will this be in a half-decade–bare minimum entry-level appreciation for a decent Tannat? Will the alcohol allow a decade or more? It is certainly a bruiser and considering all I would guess it will drink quite well in 2-3 years and then some of the over-ripe characteristics will start over-whelming it into pruneyness.
Already, the ‘perceived sweetness’ in the finish tell of age potentially tainted with late-term cloying-isms. I have tasted a half-dozen of this producer’s offerings in the past decade and frankly, few of them have appealed to MY palate. The ‘Monterey Red’ of 5 or 6 years ago was the last one I was really attracted to. Until now. I do like this wine. I think it is too young to drink–and I think the sweetspot of attractiveness is going to be sooner rather than later, and it is quite a bargain. Find some if you can and try it and judge for yourself. Extremely small lots of hand-crafted wine from this producer. Available possibly from the wine-maker with several secret handshakes.
2013 RED ZEPPELIN Temperanillo Tannat Syrah Adelaida District Paso Robles San Luis Obispo 15.7
Stephen McConnell 