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1999
Ridge - Zinfandel Jimsomare Late Picked
RP gave '97 a 90+ Xmas gift from Tom and Ellen This was pretty good with some age on it 8 yrs. good with food.
2003
Numanthia - Numanthia
The 2003 Numanthia was fashioned from yields of one ton of fruit per acre (from a clone of Tempranillo that often has the highest polyphenols of any Tempranillo clone). This cuvee is made from 70- to 100-year-old vines planted at a 2,300 foot elevation, which no doubt accounts for the freshness in this massively rich, intense red. A vivid, intense nose of espresso roast, pain grille, sweet black cherries, and creme de cassis is followed by a full-bodied, intensely-concentrated, rich, well-delineated, moderately structured, pure red that can be drunk young or cellared for a decade.
2003
Numanthia - Numanthia
The 2003 Numanthia was fashioned from yields of one ton of fruit per acre (from a clone of Tempranillo that often has the highest polyphenols of any Tempranillo clone). This cuvee is made from 70- to 100-year-old vines planted at a 2,300 foot elevation, which no doubt accounts for the freshness in this massively rich, intense red. A vivid, intense nose of espresso roast, pain grille, sweet black cherries, and creme de cassis is followed by a full-bodied, intensely-concentrated, rich, well-delineated, moderately structured, pure red that can be drunk young or cellared for a decade.
2005
Sandoval - Manchuela
The 2005 Finca Sandoval is 76% Syrah, 13% Mourvedre, and 11% Bobal fermented with native yeasts followed by malolactic fermentation in barrel with lees stirring, followed by aging from 11-13 months in French and American oak, a mix of new and seasoned 225 and 300-liter barrels. Purple-colored, the wine offers up an alluring nose of toasty oak, mineral, floral notes, blueberry, and blackberry. This leads to a full-bodied, ripe, layered wine with superb integration of oak, tannin, and acidity. There is enough structure to support 3-5 years of evolution in the cellar. This outstanding effort should be at its best between 2012 and 2025.
1998
Numanthia - Numanthia
The 1998 Numanthia is an explosively rich, super-concentrated wine of riveting intensity. The color is a dense purple, and the wine has soaked up its 18 months in new French oak. It offers a smoky, blackberry and cherry-scented nose of extraordinary purity and precision. Full-bodied, enormously-endowed, and unctuously-textured, this monstrous wine displays tremendous potential. Because of its low acidity, it can be approached now, but it is best aged for another 2-3 years, and drunk over the following two decades. This compelling new offering proves what can be achieved in the appellation of Toro. Bravo! A sensational new offering, this wine will prove to be a breakthrough effort for the Toro appellation. Made from old (70-100 years), ungrafted vines planted at an elevation of 2300 feet, yields were a minuscule 1.5 tons of fruit per acre. The wine was aged 18 months in 100% new French oak, with malolactic in barrel, and was bottled without fining or filtration. This 100% Tinta de Toro (the local name for Tempranillo) comes from a vineyard with sandy, chalky-textured soils overlaying clay. The wine is named after a legendary Spanish city that was destroyed (after twenty years of resistance) by Roman legions 133 years before the birth of Christ. It is to Spain what the hilltop village of Masada is to Israel ... a monument to foreign aggression and national resistance.
