Ancient Vines Contra Costa County Carignane

I like it. They took a chance on a varietal that doesn't usually do well in California.. and to be honest... they did well. Leave it on the shelf a couple years before you open it though. Too much alcohol... let it dissolve that sweet fruit.

Like Port? You'll like this, as it is 15% and has ample residual sugar. Hard to pair with food, but impressive ripeness.

Unfamiliar with carignane, grew on me. Will try more.

I wanted to like this wine more, but the chocolate did me in. There is ripe berry fruit and some minerality, but under a molten lava flow of chocolate.

I really don't get the chocolate thing with Cali wines, whether it's Cab, Merlot, or, in this case, Carignane. To me, it represents three misguided notions: we went for too much ripeness, then overextracted, and then went for the toasty new oak.

Why? Why harvest to make a 15% wines when you could have shot for 14% and had both ripe berries and nice acids too? Why try to make it thick and oaky? Contra Costa sands are one of the world's unique terroir. Why hide it?

Fuck! If I want chocolate, I'll eat a fucking chocolate!

That said, it's pretty decent. For a chocolate wine. I just suspect it could have been much better.

Lots of dark fruits, raisins, chocolate & oak.

Time to Drink

Second time we’ve had this Cline Wine...very good both times. I would recommend letting age as well.

Cline wines are very consistent in quality...no exception here.

Smoky bacon and sweet currants all in one. Slight tannins and lots of smokiness. Not sure about this one.

Fruity. Perhaps too much of it. Eight point eight. No more. No less.