2009 Mollydooker Velvet Glove Shiraz

Big Aussie Kicks Ass, Takes Names

Let me get something out in the open real quick: this wine is 16% alcohol. Now, most of you who have read my blog for a while—I suppose I should say, those who stuck around during my long, and unexcused absence—know I don’t tend to care for high-alcohol wine. Normally, I do not.

This is a special case. Or my tastes are changing. Or something else. Regardless, I love this wine.

2009 Mollydooker Velvet Glove Shiraz

I was introduced to this wine during the 2010 Wine Bloggers Conference in Walla Walla, Washington. During a “speed-tasting” event, this was one of the red wines offered to us to try. It was, off the bat, big, bad, (like the way Michael Jackson used the word “bad”) and bold.

legit

This is Mollydooker’s crown jewel shiraz. I’m a big, big fan of their Blue Eyed Boy and Boxer shirazes, and will hopefully be writing up at least one of them soon. The Velvet Glove is a pricey number, however—between $150-$200, which hurts to even think about.

Like a lot of good shiraz/syrah that I’ve had, the coloring on the Velvet Glove is a lot more purple than it is red or black. The edges pink out a bit, but your glass will be purple to the core. The nose is pretty bad ass. Lots of dark red fruit, some earth and some cigar box. The most interesting thing to me was that my nostrils didn’t burn.

Remember, 16% alcohol. This thing should be torching nosehairs. But it doesn’t.

The wine is very full bodied, with a long, loooooong finish. The alcohol again doesn’t go crazy on you, though it is more apparent on the palate than on the nose. Still, very good balance here. Big plum and black cherry notes. Lots of fruit, but still enough to keep a no-fruit-bombs guy like me interested.

The wine may be priced out of most people’s reach—including my own—and the populist-slash-class warfare combatant in me wants to dock this wine just for having the audacity to reach up close to $200 per bottle. But i can’t.

It’s just too tasty. I can’t stay mad at you for long, Velvet Glove.

Verdict: 95/100

2005 Marita’s Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon

Meet Marita

This, my dear friends and people who read me because they hate me but want to see what I’ll do/say next, is some friggin’ Napa Valley Cab.

Marita’s Vineyard Special Private Reserve Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon (say that fivefold fast) is a pretty fantastic bottle of wine, if I do say so myself (and I do). Limited to 225 cases, this 100% hillside cabernet sauvignon is something everyone should try.

Legit Juice

Unfortunately, by virtue of the fact that it runs a buck-and-a-half per, not everyone’s going to be able to. C’est la vie, n’est-ce pas, mes amis?

First off, the wine comes in one of the heaviest glass bottles I’ve ever encountered. Seriously, when I opened the box the bottle came in, I thought for a second it was a 1 liter bottle or something. It’s not, it’s a standard 750, but a good 10% taller and maybe 20% wider than most of the other 750s I have in my cellar. And heavy. Even empty (and hooo boy did I finish this one) the bottle felt like it might be half full.

I know the point of thick, heavy glass bottles is to lend a measure of elegance, perhaps even gravitas, to the wine. I couldn’t help thinking about the environmental impact of all that extra glass. Extra energy to make the bottles, if not recycled properly, extra glass in the trash/landfills and all.

It’s the exact opposite delivery mechanism mentality from the NPA, for instance.

But whatever, I’m not actually that concerned about it. Much more concerned about the juice, so shall we?

2005 Marita's Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon

2005 Marita's Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon

First things first: the wine is damn near black in the glass. It lightens to a rich ruby at the very edges, and mine showed just the slightest hint of tanning near the edge as well.

The nose is incredibly nicely balanced between some fruit aromas—mostly blackberry and rhubarb—and the other side of the cabernet aroma world, namely hints of leather and cigar box and cedar. On the palate, the wine is full bodied, and announces its presence with authority.

But it’s not a fruit bomb. It doesn’t “punch” you, as it were. And at 14%, it isn’t overly alcoholic for its robustness and size. It’s well balanced, all in all. The finish is long, the entire experience is lustrous and smooth, with soft, lush tannins and an overarching elegance that just rocks. It fucking tastes good, too, with fruit aromas of blackberry and black cherries that dance around.

Altogether, this is elegant, grown-up, still delicious wine, with lots of nuance and incredible balance. This is Napa Valley cab, writ large.

Verdict: 93/100
Price Point: $150

(full disclosure: this wine was provided to me as a press sample from VinTank)