2002 Colgin Red IX Estate

Another perfect wine, which has turned out even better than I anticipated seven years ago, is the estate wine, the 2002 IX Estate Cabernet Sauvignon. This is a blend of 75% Cabernet Sauvignon and 14% Merlot, 9% Cabernet Franc and 2% Petit Verdot from the hillsides above the winery (one of the most gorgeous vineyards I’ve ever seen in the world). Yields were a frightening one-half ton per acre. Like all of Colgin’s 2002s, as this wine sat in the glass it seemed to change and improve every 20 seconds or so. Gorgeous black/plum/purple in color, much like the Tychson Hill, it offers up a completely different set of aromatics, ranging from Asian soy to damp forest floor to hints of mountain laurel, lavender, roasted meats, a touch of pepper, and wonderfully sweet blackberry and cassis fruit. Some charcoal and subtle barbecue smoke are also present in this extraordinary statement, which has also evolved at a relatively rapid pace. It seems fully mature by most standards yet should hold at this plateau for at least a decade. What is remarkable about all of these wines is that they were aged in 100% new French oak, but the oak has gone into total hiding. The debut vintage of the Tychson Hill Vineyard, which is located right on Route 29, north of St. Helena, was 2002. I gave it a prefect score seven years ago, and there’s no reason to change that. My only surprise from my recent tasting is that the wine has evolved slightly faster than I would have thought. Tel. (707) 963-0999

(from soil that Mark Aubert describes as "60% rocks") Good full ruby. Hugely complex, somewhat exotic aromas of black raspberry, black cherry, blueberry, plum, mocha, minerals and woodsmoke. Suave, lush, thick and seamless, yet with plenty of inner-palate energy. Very concentrated flavor of creme de cassis, with notes of exotic spices and soy sauce. Finishes with big, chewy, sweet tannins and great breadth. From vines in their third leaf, cropped at just a half-ton an acre. I underestimated this wine when I tasted it from barrel a year ago.

(from the third leaf for these estate vines; includes 10% merlot, 10% cabernet franc and 5% petit verdot) Good deep ruby color. Superripe but bright aromas of blackberry, minerals, flint and red licorice; shows a rocky character a bit like that of the Tychson Hill. Then supersweet, lush and chocolatey. With a bit less depth of flavor owing to the young vines, one is more aware of the Taransaud oak and the wine's powerful tannins.