Bright clear canary. Road Warrior nose, one part sweat and grunge, one section diesel dust and a few drops of cinnamon-pear. Cigar smoke pours out of it, forming curls around a base of sharp green mineral and bread crumbs drizzled in honey. Over-riding the whole thing though is a cider-y old-world nuance of fermentation and match-head. A most interesting nose. Not pure. Not clean. Not pristine. Not fruit-driven. I can’t wait to taste it.
An almost peanut-buttery essence on entry. But creamy, not organic peanut butter. The kind that doesn’t have to be stirred or refrigerated. The yummy kind. The pear turns rich–I honestly did not expect quite so much fruit from this wine. Fresh fruit all over the middle. Crisp, orchard-sweet fruit–not a speck slutty–bright thin apple, not-quite-ripe strawberries, watermelon. Buttery richness brings in thoughtfulness in the finish, graced with copious tannin.
There’s nothing not to love about this wine. I have no idea what it is, but let’s go get the bottle and find out.
2017 AHEARNE ‘Wild Skins’ Kuč/Bogdanuša/Pošip 40/40/20 Hvar Dalmatia Croatia 12.0
Stephen McConnell 