Winery - JLC
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* Expert NoteJanuary 12, 2012
A good wine in a difficult year, this estate-grown Cabernet does not lean heavily on new oak, nor does it need to. Blackberry, cassis and earth form the solid core, and there are substantial, natural-tasting acids providing support. The neutral barrels were half American and half French, but it’s the fruit and vineyard that are most on display.
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* Expert NoteJanuary 12, 2012
Palette is a sensational value from one of Walla Walla’s still-unrecognized superstar vineyards, Spofford Station. This Cab/Merlot blend is saturated with fruit and beautifully crafted. In a difficult year (2004 froze out most Walla Walla vineyards) it is a rare jewel. Hints of compost, earth, mushroom and other herbal elements add interest, and the wine is buoyed with lively acid.
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JLC Red Blend - 2004
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* Expert NoteJanuary 12, 2012
Though not as powerful and concentrated as the Spofford Station Syrah, this wine displays the same distinctive, complex flavor palette—a mix of earth, herb, compost, fungus, smoke, rock and, oh yeah, baby, oodles of fruit. This sort of flavor profile is similar to the biodynamic wines of Cayuse, but at half the cost.
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JLC Merlot - 2004
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* Expert NoteJanuary 12, 2012
There’s good funk and bad funk; this is right on the border. Scents of earth and compost, gamy meat and bitter greens run amok on the palate, almost concealing the fruit. The interplay of flavors and the overall complexity and length mark this as a Spofford Station Syrah, but just as it should be knitting together, it falls apart, leaving a trail of black olives in its wake.
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JLC Syrah - 2005
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* Expert NoteJanuary 12, 2012
This is a gorgeous mix of Rhône-like herbs, spices, earthy funk and tight, tart fruit. It plays out beautifully on the palate, blended seamlessly and expanding into a luscious rainbow of fruit and earth and herb. There is nothing heavy or hot here, but the concentration (just under 15% alcohol) is superb.
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JLC Syrah - 2004
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* Expert NoteJanuary 12, 2012
This is exceptionally concentrated, a dense collage of berry and cassis fruits, sap and spice, from excellent Lewis vineyard fruit. There’s plenty of acid, giving it unusual focus; the wine is detailed and sharp, and it drills down through its flavors rather than spreading them out broadly. Some dill notes arrive in the finish; just a hint that adds some texture and detail.
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* Expert NoteJanuary 12, 2012
Why a 2005 vintage Merlot from this excellent vineyard is just being released six years later is one of those mysteries of wine. But it’s a fine bottle, with plenty of life ahead. The tannins are softening up, and the fruit is smooth and ripe, with berries and plums and cassis. There is a generous wash of caramel and mocha also, and it’s well-integrated and drinking at its peak.
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JLC Merlot - 2005
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* Expert NoteJanuary 12, 2012
A mirror image of the winery’s 2005 Merlot, this reverses the proportions, with Cabernet making up 90% of the blend. Straightforward black cherry fruit is accompanied with ashy tannins, not too rough. Though balanced, it’s a thin wine, without much depth or texture.
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* Expert NoteJanuary 12, 2012
Often in Washington a bit of Syrah is blended into Cabernet; this cleverly reverses it with 10% Cabernet Sauvignon added to the Spofford Station estate vineyard grapes. It’s got a lush fruit base, with strong flavors of silage and compost—the sort of biodynamically-induced “funk” that marks Cayuse wines. This is stylistic and distinctive, but not for everyone. I love the depth, the texture and the length—it’s not just about the fruit.
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JLC Syrah - 2004
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