I had selected a 2001 Snoqualmie Syrah. According to my cellar software, the wine was rated “drink/mature.” So, the question was whether the wine had “jumped the shark” or the tannins softened into a nice sipping experience.
Glorious T said it looked a little “sketch.” We decanted it through Vinturi into our decanter. All eyes became riveted to the bottle. Sloshing in the bottle was a healthy dose of sediment. The residue is bitter tasting but harmless. It’s created over time by the breakdown of pigments and tannins in the wine. It’s important to note that sediment can be found in great wine, so we still didn’t know exactly what we had. (Editor: the Snoqualmie wasn't from the Winery Insider case, but rather a dark recess of my wine cellar.)
I knew this was a possibility, so I had a standby wine ready to roll: 2005 White Oak Napa Valley Merlot. This was a good wine, the body was a little fuller, and the approach stronger than the smooth Merlot I was expecting.
We also popped open a bottle of Cameron Hughes Lot 39 2005 Barossa Valley Shiraz, which was a selection from the Winery Insider case. This was a tasty number with a berry approach and pepper on the end. It opened up as we sipped and was the top-rated wine of the night.
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2 comments:
We're glad you liked the Cameron Hughes Lot 39 Barossa Valley Shiraz from Winery Insider (invino). Just to note-- The Snoqualmie is not a wine we sold (nor ever have)...from your other wine shipment perhaps? Always sad to hear about less than stellar wines; glad to know it wasn't ours. Cheeers!
Thanks for the post and thanks for clarifying what might have been confusing for our readers. We're looking forward to sampling the rest of our case from Winery Insider. It also should be noted that I have had other quite good wines from Snoqualmie.
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