My buddy Rewt kindly offered me a mixed case of wines that had been forgotten in a garage for 4 years. In actuality, some had been forgotten far longer with bottles from the late 90’s mingling with an ’89 White Zinfandel! You know where I am going with this….. down the drain with most of them. This Sauvignon Blanc however showed promise. A high ullage and decent color made me try it. I was pleasantly surprised!
Pale gold, perhaps medium lemon and still showing youth, even though it has lots of age on it. A watery sheen medium viscosity (13.5% ABV). The nose is very interesting with some burnt ginger, dried grapefruit peel, blood orange pith, a hint of green grass, a touch of a smoky note and possibly some oak? The palate is dry with medium (+) acidity and a medium body. Albeit not delightful, it does show some interesting character and perseverance. There’s a certain level of bitterness, phenolic or otherwise that keeps showing up- I could even smell it. Considering this wine has been sitting in somebody’s hot garage for ages I’m totally blown away that a 16-year-old wine is in such good condition. The citrus fruits show off the wine’s age- being desiccated, and very ripe. The smokiness I got on the nose carries through to the palate and the finish is quite long. The grapefruit pith flavors persist the longest on the backend. I would never have guessed that this wine was heat damaged, only past its prime. Drink it now or forever hold your peace. It’s hard to scale a wine of its provenance (or lack thereof) but it would probably have been a 91 to 92 pointer in its day. Fun to try! Salut….
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