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scottj
Houston, TX
Grape Fermenter
Posts:557
 | | 10/05/2005 12:31 PM |
| Any VCers going to the Shafer Hillside Select tasting at Beltramos on Wednesday, October 12th ? I'm traveling to the bay area for work next week (and the Cal Cult Smack Down the following Saturday) and signed up for the Shafer tasting. I'd enjoy meeting up with anyone else attending and perhaps heading for dinner afterward.
Scott | | | |
| skwid
Wine Connoisseur
Posts:5452
| | 10/05/2005 2:48 PM |
| | I'll be going along with Tanglenet. Btw, you need to sign up for the event. | | | |
| scottj
Houston, TX
Grape Fermenter
Posts:557
| | 10/05/2005 3:08 PM |
| It will be good to see you again, and to meet Tanglenet. Are you heading north right after the tasting, or would you both be up for some dinner ?
I signed up and paid as soon as I saw the post here. | | | |
| tanglenet
Oakland, California
Wine Bottler
Posts:3199
| | 10/07/2005 2:23 AM |
| | Actually I would prefer to eat before, just to coat my stomach, but I don't think there is going to be much time to do so. I don't know what Skwid's schedule is like, but he's driving, so what he says goes. | |
TN posted on Cellartracker
"I drink no more than a sponge." François Rabelais
www.tanglenet.com | |
| skwid
Wine Connoisseur
Posts:5452
| | 10/07/2005 4:47 PM |
| | I could do the "eat beforehand" thing but I'm not sure where to go early. In talking with Beltramos they said that the tastings start at 6:30 p.m. PT sharp. Arriving a few minutes early is probably a good idea. | | | |
| scottj
Houston, TX
Grape Fermenter
Posts:557
| | 10/08/2005 3:23 PM |
| | Eating beforehand is going to be tough for me, if traffic is as bad as I recall. Beltramos also stressed arriving early when I booked my place. Oh well ... | | | |
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skwid
Wine Connoisseur
Posts:5452
| | 10/08/2005 11:16 PM |
| | Btw, if we eat afterwards I'll probably have a friend who will be staying at my place join us for dinner. | | | |
| whiner
Second star to the right, and straight on till morning
Wine Thief
Posts:2875
| | 10/15/2005 9:50 AM |
| I want notes!
a | |
I can't listen to that much Wagner. I start getting the urge to conquer Poland.
-- Woody Allen | |
| scottj
Houston, TX
Grape Fermenter
Posts:557
| | 10/15/2005 11:02 PM |
| OK, here are some notes ...
A vertical tasting of 1995-2001 Shafer Hillside Select Cabernet Sauvignon, held at Beltramos on Menlo Park, CA and hosted by Doug Shafer. The tasting was not blind and the wines were decanted and poured about 1 to 1 1/2 hours before tasting.
95 HSS - Ruby red, with the slightest hint of tawniness just starting to appear. Beautiful rich nose of black fruits and herbs. Nice pure flavors in the mouth, with a bit sharpness in the middle. Doug commented that this hashness was not usual, and suspected something was wrong with this bottle. I was able to try another bottle of the 95 HSS at Shafer yesterday, and it was better than this one, with long mouthfilling flavors and a great finish.
I won't comment on the color of the rest of the wines as they were all deep red/purple with varying degrees of opaqueness.
96 HSS - Tight at first, with a light nose, little fruit and some drying tannins. Soon, though, it became magnificent, with hints of chocolate accompanying the great fruit. Extremely rich and smooth, and totally integrated. The tannins completely smoothed and the finish went on forever.
97 HSS - When I first tried it, the nose was incredible - huge black fruit aromas with the slightest trace of heat. It was somewhat muted on the palate, but the deep, dense rich fruit flavors and perfect balance was evident, along with a nice long finish. When I revisited the wine a few minutes later, it had really opened up, and was glorious. I didn't have any more time with the wine, but wouldn't be surprised if it would continue to develop with even more time.
98 HSS - Beautiful nose and flavors, although not quite as deep or full as the '97 or '99. Well integrated and drinking extremely well.
99 HSS - This, too, seems somewhat closed initially, but eventually showed the great fruit, along with the chocolate, mocha and spice. It continued to expand and develop throughout the tasting, but I think it only teased at what it would become.
00 HSS - I got a hint of greenness on the nose, in addition to the expected cherry and black current flavors. It was nicely balanced, with good, somewhat primary fruit on the palate (without any green flavors). Tannins were surprisingly smooth, and this was another nice drink.
01 HSS - Wow ! Great nose, with vanilla accompanying the usual black fruits and chocolate/mocha. Deep, rich flavors explode in the mouth, followed by a long, long finish. A very flashy wine, and fully open. My notes ask "where's the tannins ?", it was so smooth and well integrated.
This was a great tasting ! Doug was a fantastic guest host, regaling us with lots of stories in between discussion of the wines. The wines were surprisingly similar, showing the consistency of the vineyard and the wine making, and making coming up with differentiating tasting notes very difficult. Even the wines from the "tough" vintages, 1998 and 2000, were excellent and probably suffered only in comparison with the other vintages. There was an obvious separation between the 95 and the rest of the wines, in that the 95 was starting to show its maturity, beginning to develop secondary characteristics on both the nose and the palate. All the others were still youthful.
Following the "main" tasting, the staff at Beltramos opened and poured 2001 Sunspot, the 25th anniversary magnum-only bottling from Shafer. Very similar to the 01 HSS, but a little primary and simple in comparison. It's probably not fair to compare as this one had no air before tasting.
Scott | | | |
| tanglenet
Oakland, California
Wine Bottler
Posts:3199
| | 10/17/2005 2:16 AM |
| | Great notes Scott. Thank you! | |
TN posted on Cellartracker
"I drink no more than a sponge." François Rabelais
www.tanglenet.com | |
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