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Bi!! Bi!! is offline
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Default 1990 Diamond Creek Lake Vineyard

On Saturday, July 21, 2012 5:16:45 PM UTC-4, cwdjrxyz wrote:
> On Jul 19, 12:50*pm, "Bi!!" > wrote:
> > I bought a private collection of Diamond Creek many years ago with a
> > variety of vintages going back to 1974. *Included in the collection
> > was a fair amount of Lake Vineyard bottlings and last night I drank my
> > last bottle of 1990 Diamond Creek Lake Vineyard. *I was lucky to have
> > met and chatted with Al Brounstein on a number of occasions. *Al was a
> > real Napa pioneer and I was pleased to have been able to listen to his
> > tales of founding Diamond Creek and his thought process on terroir in
> > the Napa Valley. *I picked up some dry aged prime NY Strip steaks and
> > grilled them with local fresh sweet corn that I picked 15 minutes
> > before slightly poaching for just a few minutes. *The wine was dark
> > reddish purple with a slight brickish cast. *Very aromatic with
> > crushed currant and blackberry notes followed by tobacco and cedar.
> > The wine was mature but not old. *Black fruit and earth on the palate
> > with cedat and leather on the edges. *Rich and smooth on the finish.
> > Terrific "A"
>
> I have never had much Diamond Creek CS, but I do find I have a single
> bottle Diamond Creek Volcanic Hill 1981. The fill is still in the low
> neck, the color is still very deep, and there appear to be no issues
> from what little one can tell from an unopened bottle. I have stored
> it properly since shortly after release. Have you tasted this wine?


I have tasted the wine (I might even have a bottle left) The vines were all reportedly planted from cuttings smuggled from First Growth Bordeaux vineyards so the wines have a very distinctive Bordeaux-like quality. If I remember correctly all of the 1981's that I tasted were quite mature with lots of tertiary components. Cedar, leather, graphite, earth and mushroom come to mind but there should still be a solid core of deep dark fruits and a firm mineral component. Volcanic Hill is perhaps the "toughest" of the Diamond Creek vineyards from a tannic level but suffice to say that it's probably ready about now.