2000 Limited Edition Griffin Creek Vineyards

For my birthday, I pulled a 2000 bottle of an estate blend from Griffin Creek vineyards. Having received new Riedel crystal stems as a present, here’s the perfect combination: fine wine into fine crystal. When pulling the cork, the old chunk of wood was still viable. (…One of my pet peeves is how wine makers use cheap corks on good wines). In decanting this 18 year-old wine, some sediment appeared. Sediment in wine is nothing unusual, but this told me I should have poured this bottle five years earlier. So, I did use a wine strainer in pouring to solve the "looks" problem. Here was a red blend of Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot with Cab-Franc added. Because of the vintner's four, multi-barrel fermentation process, I would call this a “Cuvee”; it is complex red. The nose is earthy, sage. Tasting gave a tangled mix of leather, cocoa, and cinnamon. Being three heavy reds, the finish is deep tannin. This wine aged on the cork for years,turning a deep, deep ruby red color. It showed great, strong legs. If you had a bottle ten years ago, you could proudly take it anywhere, gift it a special person, or enjoy with a meaty dinner. As of now, I’m going on-line to find a more recent release. Happy birthday to me.