This is a bright, sunny wine, fairly light in color, spicy and delicate, while showing serious gravity in the structural department. I had at first pegged it as maybe Syrah and Carignane, but turning the bottle around reveals it to be a straight-up Claret. I didn’t see that one comin, and for Merlot, it’s a beautiful blend–especially from California. Chilly and nuanced, with a certain depth of earth on careful examination, it still displays a fruitiness and light-heartedness rarely seen in BDX blends typically *shooting-for-the-stars* in such New World melanges. I can’t decide if it is destined for early-enjoyment or has the chops to rest for a decade. Bravo to whoever put this together, for bringing an easy-drinker with tight pie-cherry and serious acidity into a game almost unilaterally dominated by clunky extraction and concentration. The price and exuberance defies the norm, and I’m in love. You could easily mistake this for Right-Bank wines destined for US consumption of same or higher value–but only from good years. With 40 barrels of this out there, there’s plenty to go around so FIND IT. It is the DEFINITION of ‘claret’. Just not one we see too much anymore.
2021 CALIMIST ‘Red Wine’ ME/Cab/CF 65/30/15 Sonoma County 13.5
Stephen McConnell 