By Lenn Thompson, Executive Editor
Over the next several weeks, our editors will be tasting and re-tasting a slew of wines released during the 2010 calendar year for potential inclusion in our 2010 Wines of the Year tasting scheduled for mid-January.
(We'll be announcing our revamped categories and process later this week, by the way.)
As I scoured Long Island winery websites recently to identify wines that I hadn' tasted or wines that I hadn't formally reviewed, I realized that I never gave the Shinn Estate Vineyards 2007 Wild Boar Doe ($30) an official tasting, even if I'd had it a few times at the winery.
A blend of 40% merlot, 23% cabernet sauvignon, 17% malbec, 15% petit verdot, and 5% cabernet franc, it is drinking well now, but will likely display much more complexity into the future.
The nose is ripe and brooding, with macerated blackberries, black cherry, Moroccan spice, black pepper, smoked bacon and subtle leaf tobacco aromas.
Firm and a bit chewy, the ripe tannins provide ample structure for a dense core of fruit — blackberries, black plum and cherry — with salty-sweet bacon, vanilla, spice and just a bit of oak peeking through on the lengthy finish.
On days two and three, the fruit character changed quite a bit, showing interesting compote spices like cinnamon, cardamom and allspice.
It wears its 14.6% abv well, with more than enough fruit to support it.
This wine should have many years of development ahead of it. Unfortunately, it's now sold out at the winery.
Producer: Shinn Estate Vineyards
AVA: North Fork of Long Island
ABV: 14.6%
Price: $30
Rating: 90