Monday, July 27, 2009

California 2009 – Justin Vineyards and Winery

Justin Winery, www.justinwine.com,  has a very attractive tasting room in addition to a dining room that is open nightly, bistro lunches on weekends and a great wine country place to stay, appropriately called The Just Inn.

Among the wines we tasted were these:

2008 Sauvignon Blanc – crisp and refreshing, with melon and just a bit of that Sauvignon Blanc herbaceousness, common to the variety.  Some citrus fruit, tangerine and orange showed up in the flavor profile.  $15.00

2007 Cabernet Sauvignon – this 100% Cabernet Sauvignon is soft and velvety with lots of great fruit, plums and cherry in the aroma and flavor, as well as a bit of chocolate and vanilla in the finish.  Lots going on in this wine.  $26.25

2007 Syrah – classic black pepper in the aroma.  Nice French oak integration, with some cassis and chocolate.  Soft tannins round it out.  Long, rich finish.  Nice wine for lamb.  $26.25

2006 Isosceles – this is the flagship wine for which Justin is known.  A Bordeaux style blend of 86% Cabernet Sauvignon, 9% Cabernet Franc, and 5% Merlot, this wine has everything…aromas of blackberries and cassis and flavors of all sorts of black fruits, with beautifully balanced oak  It is round, full bodied, and has a velvety finish that goes on and on.  Pricey for $62.00

2007 Obtuse – this port-style wine is one of the better examples of port –style wines I have tasted.  Jammy fruit and chocolate, great balance.  The claim is that the wine will evolve for at least 5 to 7 years and that an open bottle will keep, under proper care, for up to 6 months.  $26.25

2007 Orphan – this wine has an interesting history.  It was created from what they called the “orphan” barrels of wine that were left after the 2003 earthquake destroyed about 5000 cases of wine that was aging in barrels.  They blended the various wines that survived and so “Orphan” was born.  This is a blend of about 60% Cabernet Sauvignon, 20% Syrah, and the rest composed of Petite Verdot, Merlot, and Malbec.  Aged in oak 14 months and a very pleasant, easy to drink red.  $18.00

Next stop:  Tablas Creek Vineyards

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