When ferreting about in one of my cellars a few years ago I dropped this magnum from a height of a couple of metres, it bounced and survived.
Geyserville 1999, Ridge en magnum
The nose is rather oaky, but there is plenty of bramble fruit as well. It is pretty alcoholic. Distracting as the oak is, this actually smells like an acceptable, warming bottle of wine for a cold winter’s day; not complex or profound, but big and reasonably fun. On the palate the oak is very noticeable too especially on the finish where it seems to dry it out a bit. There is a good amount of spicy, bramble fruit, though, and it is quiet weighty. It is not terribly long, nor complex. It seems as mature as it is ever going to be. To be honest, this isn’t a terribly interesting drink, but it is warm and powerful enough to go with the chili I am cooking tonight.
