2009 The Prisoner

A Slight Decline, But Still Sublime

I am a big fan of The Prisoner. This is not news to anyone who previously read my rhapsodic review of the 2008 vintage. If you haven’t, feel free to, either now, or when you’re finished here.

I’m also a big fan of this wine, although it does show some dissimilarities with its immediate predecessor.

2009 The Prisoner Napa Valley Red Wine

For one thing, while Orin Swift Cellars is still the name on the bottle, a new crew owns The Prisoner. The 2009 is the first vintage bottled by The Prisoner’s new owners, Huneeus Vintners, who also own (among others) Quintessa and Faust in Napa Valley, Flowers on the Sonoma Coast, and Veramonte in Chile.

I’m not so sure the change in ownership has benefitted the wine. In fact, before finding any of this out, I had already decided I preferred the 2008. Still, this remains one of the single finest value buys in Napa Valley wine in my opinion. At $35 per bottle, you can easily do much, much worse.

In fact, don’t let my hand-wringing over the inside baseball of ownership dissuade you: this is some really, really good wine.

The 2009 Prisoner has a dark burgundy core in the glass, that lightens a bit to red at its edges. On the nose you’ll find ripe cherries, a touch of strawberry and raspberry. The nose is almost entirely fruit, and not quite as complex as the previous vintage. The wine is medium bodied, and the palate gives more of the complex aromas and flavors that are missing a bit from the nose: incredibly bright, jammy raspberry and cherry notes mingle with subtle dark chocolate and just a touch of smoke.

Soft, supple tannins round out the mouthfeel. Incredibly tasty.

Hopefully, Huneeus won’t fix what ain’t broke, and hopefully fans will be able to enjoy The Prisoner for years to come.

2001 Bonny Doon Vineyard Le Cigare Volant

Bonny Doon Flagship Holds Up Over Time

It should come as no surprise, dear reader, that I like Bonny Doon Vineyard. In an interview this summer I namedropped BDV’s head honcho, Randall Grahm, as someone I really admire in California winemaking.

Le Cigare Volant is the flagship wine from Bonny Doon. A Châteauneuf-du-Pape-style blend of grenache, syrah, mourvèdre, viognier, cinsault, and carignane, this is the southern Rhône-inspired wine that gave the Rhône Ranger his famous nom de nick.

A few months back, I had the pleasure of meeting Randall at BDV’s Santa Cruz tasting room, and he poured vintage after vintage of this mainstay. I think the 2001 might have been my favorite of all the Volants I tried.

Tall, Dark, and Handsome

The 2001 Le Cigare Volant from Bonny Doon is the first recipient of my heretofore-un-awarded Tall, Dark, and Handsome badge. A dark, ruby red at its core, the wine lightens and gets a bit tawny to the edges, but it’s still a bold, dark presence in the glass.

Notes of leather mix with a smoky raspberry aroma on the nose, mingling with plum and other dark fruit. The wine is medium-bodied and exceptionally balanced. Full of lush, fleshy fruit, the wine has a smokiness that is unmistakable and, for those who will enjoy it, intoxicating. And not just intoxicating because it’s alcoholic, smart guy.

This wine has held up beautifully over the last nine years, and feels no where near its peak. It could drink well for another decade, certainly, but it’s incredibly delicious now, and highly recommended. And at about $20-$30 a bottle, it’s a complete steal.

Verdict: 92/100

2008 The Prisoner

Gladly Taken Prisoner

Orin Swift Cellars is new.

I don’t mean “new” like they were just formed yesterday, or this is their first vintage, or even that you probably haven’t heard of them. They weren’t, the first release of The Prisoner was the 2003 vintage, and it’s entirely likely that you have.

What I mean is that they’re nouveau. They’re young, and vibrant, and current, and modern. Exciting and interesting, doing things and saying things.

Winery honcho/winemaker/jefe Dave Phinney likes him some zinfandel. The first wine he released under the Orin Swift Cellars name was the 2003 Prisoner, a zinfandel-based blend of some incredible Napa juice. The latest vintage is no different.

The 2008 Prisoner is 46% zinfandel, 26% cabernet sauvignon, 15% syrah, 10% petite sirah, 2% charbono, and 1% grenache. The main players, in my opinion, are the first three, and before you read on you should probably try to think, for a second, what a zinfandel/cab sauv/syrah blend might be like.

Ready?

If your first thought was “big,” you get a gold friggin’ star.

Luckily for me, and everyone else who’s had the fortune of drinking the 2008 Prisoner, “big” is not the only appropriate descriptor here. Fruit-forward, balanced, acidic, earthy all work as well. So, the notes, then?

The wine is dark as night in the core of the glass, and lightens to a bright ruby red at the edges. The nose is lush with sweet cherries and darker, richer blackberries, plus a hint of tobacco or cigar box aromas. It smells rich. It smells like it’s not about to fuck around.

The Prisoner is a full-bodied wine that really coats your mouth. Here is an actual note I wrote in my notebook:

Tannin structure out the ass

This, I assure you, should be translated as “lots of structure.” The tannins aren’t rough or overpowering, though. Raspberry and cherry do a little dance, make a little love, and get down with a nicely-balanced earthiness and acidity that just makes itself known on the mid-palate. The lingering finish of cherries keeps you coming back for more.

I say god damn, this is some tasty wine.

The Prisoner has gained a cult following, and it is deserved. This latest vintage is a great example of California red blends done well, and for around $30 a bottle it won’t take your pocketbook captive.

Verdict: 95/100

2008 The Prisoner

2008 The Prisoner