2008 Dancing Hares Red

Even better, and seriously underrated by me last year, is the 2008 Dancing Hares. A blend of 46% Cabernet Sauvignon, 31% Cabernet Franc, 15% Merlot, and the rest Petit Verdot, production is 525 cases of this exceptionally opulent, intense wine with an inky bluish purple color and a glorious noise of creosote, camphor, and blueberry pie intermixed with acacia flowers, forest floor and black currants. The compelling aromatics are easily backed up by a full-bodied wine buttressed by sweet tannin and fresh acids, giving it a laser-like precision. This is slightly better than the 2007, which is somewhat of an anomaly, and has great texture and suppleness. Drink this now or cellar it for 20+ years. It’s good to retaste these wines from a tiny 5-acre vineyard planted in volcanic rock in the famous red aiken soils found on Howell Mountain. This is another winery that boasts Andy Erickson as the winemaker and David Abreu as the consulting viticulturalist. The 2007 performed better at this tasting, but the 2008 was dramatically better than the barrel sample I tasted last year. This is another example of a wine with a significant percentage of Cabernet Franc, improving considerably with time in bottle. This isn’t a surprise when I think of my history rating Cheval Blanc from St.-Emilion as another example of this. Tel. (707) 967-8296