Benchmarking. Decanted for 6 hours in a wide-bottom decanter. In reality, opened this for Saturday (it is Thursday). On the nose: off the bat, perhaps doesn't have the intensity of the 15, but a coiled density, very much its own vintage...rose petals, leaves, wild strawberry, soft mulberry and pomegranate. By the way, the color is amazing for a Thomas: a dense magenta. On the palate: fantastic acidity, then soft stem notes, black raspberry, wild strawberry, excellent density, then sour cherry and soft finely grained tannin on the finish. Wow..perhaps not as immediately enticing as the 15, but undoubtedly one of my favorite early showings since at least '12. We'll see how this develops over the next few days.
Benchmarking. Decanted for 6 hours in a wide-bottom decanter. In reality, opened this for Saturday (it is Thursday). On the nose: off the bat, perhaps doesn't have the intensity of the 15, but a coiled density, very much its own vintage...rose petals, leaves, wild strawberry, soft mulberry and pomegranate. By the way, the color is amazing for a Thomas: a dense magenta. On the palate: fantastic acidity, then soft stem notes, black raspberry, wild strawberry, excellent density, then sour cherry and soft finely grained tannin on the finish. Wow..perhaps not as immediately enticing as the 15, but undoubtedly one of my favorite early showings since at least '12. We'll see how this develops over the next few days.
Nov 27th, 2020
Dundee Hills, Willamette Valley, Oregon, USA
