San Simeon 2003 Petite Sirah

manual

decanted for one and a half hours. dark color. very deep from middle to the edges. no variation. the nose contains cedar, oak, very woody. almost like a campfire that's just been put out. my girlfriend gets metallic row boat and oars. neat. also pine needles and blackberry. the alcohol shows a touch as well. overall a thick nose. we agree on lake cabin up north. the palate has serious oak up front then giving way in the mids to dark dark fruit and then coming back in spades on the finish. hmmmm. good thing i'm making my favorite Rib Eye with Cowboy Rub (black pepper, coffee grounds, brown sugar, and kosher salt). so this is one of the first wines in a while that has this much oak on it but i'm not running away. i can see the appeal here. especially since there's a good amount of plum and prune and blackberry pie filling in the middle. OLD WORLD FANS (that's me) LEAVE THE ROOM! but i won't. it's my house and dammit i'm sticking it out. so, though the fruit remains on the finish this is a STEAK WINE! my girlfriend senses a bit of the heat that i'm guessing will burn off. overall probably not the most ideal way to experience Petite Sirah. i will get back as this opens up as i'm sure it will change somewhat. but i'm not relying on a drastic change.

Tasting Tags: blackberry-pie monster oak plum smoke