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+--- Thread: 2001 Castano Solanera (/thread-12248.html)
- newsguy - 02-20-2003
when all the buzz started on this wine a few months back, i picked up a bottle of this monastrel/cab mix and wasn't that impressed. but RP gave it a 93, and folks continued to rave about it (on another board), so i decided to give this another try. i figured maybe i just missed something or had an off bottle....
second time was the charm. dark, purplish ruby color. decanted 45 minutes and bingo: deep nose of blueberries, blackberries and cherries, with a hint of vanilla and oak. (reminded me of a shiraz) tastes of same, with mild, drying tannins. medium weight on the palate and a good finish. after a night with the vacu-vin, spice and earth notes came into play. at this point, the nose is bigger than the taste, and the wine definitely improves with air time. i'd say decant at least 45 minutes. not a 93 wine by any stretch in my mind, but i'd give it a solid 89. and it's a bargain at $11.99.
- dananne - 02-20-2003
Yeah, I loved this one, too, with some airing -- decanted about 45 minutes (after pouring and enjoying a first glass). I've bought several, some of which I'm going to lay down for awhile, as I think it may age for a few years.
I talked about this recently on here, and advised Auburnwine to get some at the Atlanta store where he sometimes shops before I snapped it all up (as I did with the Vina Alarba grenache).
Have you tried the Castano Hecula mourvedre yet? RP gave it a 91, it's at the same price point, and I was pretty happy with it, too. A bit rougher, and might need a bit of time. I did not decant, though, on the first bottle i had.
- newsguy - 02-21-2003
actually, i'm going to try the hecula for the first time this weekend. i expect the hecula would be a bit rougher than the solanera since it's all mourvedre, and the solanera is 65% mourvedre and 35% cab. i'll post notes on monday.
and i'm normally not equipped to decant wine where i'll be this weekend, but i'll take something with me to do so. thanks for the tip.