A peak at the 2003

I had a really good night on Saturday. Sasha was in The City with an old friend so I took Alec (my son) to Pizzaiola, a great pizza and pasta place at Telegraph and 51st in Oakland. It’s fun to have a “guys'” night out. I also took along a 375 of the 2003 Butterdragon Hill. It was a good chance for me to sip on our upcoming release.

Just a few informal thoughts…

Elegance and restraint. It is not as fruit forward or primary as the 2002 was at this stage. The wine is regaining some heft as we put some time between it and the bottling last September. The fruit is really nice, but there’s complexity showing through that differentiates it from the 02. Oak, spice box, anise, tea, mocha… it’s not as big and lush as the 02, but probably a more complete and definitely more complex wine. Probably will age longer. Definitely more sophisticated. Definitely better than the 2002 with a meal. I like the color — a medium ruby with lovely luster. Doesn’t look “big” in the glass… yet. Charming cassis and raspberry ribbon of fruit. Some will like it a lot better than the 2002, some will not. While it also displays the candy aroma in the finished glass that seems to be the M.O. of Butterdragon, it’s currently not the “fun” party wine that the 2002 was/is… also lower in alcohol than the 02. I like it. How cool is it to get to know this vineyard.