Goin Back to Cali...

Two beautiful, but extremely different young California Cabs last night, plus a few older bottles, a not-so-great bottle of Hermitage. First, the 2005 Lewis Cellars Cabernet Sauvignon (not sure if I wrote about the other bottle of this I tried a few weeks ago)... anyway, I love Lewis wines... and this thing is a monster. Certainly the most powerful regular bottling of Lewis I've ever had... Tons of mocha, dusty earthiness, black jammy fruit. Needs a year or so... The 2002 Spottswoode Cabernet Sauvignon is quite different. While still very concentrated, the wine is elegance to a "t" in modern-styled California wines. Lots of dust, with round, soft tannins, and tons of anise and black currant. The 1995 BV Georges de Latour was rustic, though it still had some good fruit to it, was not as refined as the 1994 BV Georges de Latour - though the 94 was a bit more elegant, it didn't show as well from 2 different bottles last night. Nod to the 95... The 1999 Jean Luc Columbo Le Rouets Hermitage Rouge was very closed, but appeared to want to open up... not sure if it ever was going to.... and ultimately determined to be raisiny... a dissapointment to be sure.