Winelog #6 Regusci

Regusci: 5330 Silverado Trail, Napa, CA. 94558 (707) 261-5251

I am told that here we did a three-year vertical of the Angelo's Vineyard Cabernet. '06, '07, '08. I vaguely remember these wines being exceptional, every one of them, though consistently well aged and opened from front-to-back, all still with plenty of room to grow. 

Regusci is a very unpretentious, sometimes-raucous, fun tasting room. I am told that here we did a three-year vertical of the Angelo's Vineyard Cabernet. '06, '07, '08. I remember these wines being exceptional, every one of them, though consistently well aged and opened from front-to-back, all still with plenty of room to grow. 

Neil is the general manager there, and although he will disavow any bonafide wine expertise, he's only being modest. As I wrote down what he told me, he swore up and down that it was all bullshit. 

They have 170 acres of 360 total planted to fruit in a pretty straight rectangle stretching from the trail up the mountain. 

A chard with no malolactic whatsoever, but a nice roundness from regular stirring on the lees during the barrel aging. I like some forced ml, and I liked this.

Merlot: really nice soft mouth feel, great cherry tones and holiday spice. I know, it sounds like carrolling and would be a hit served up for that. 

These are American-oak aged cabs, and agreed by many of more sophisticated pallette than mine, one of two best in the Valley.   

08 cab delivers notes of sourdough, balanced with black fruit on the nose, very strong mid-to-back pallette with a finish of about 30-35 seconds. Really.

05 large format. The aging process is mellowed and altered in large format and this against the '06 and '07 was clear in the mouthfeel. Although maybe I couldn't clearly define the difference, I could perceive of some qualitative break here in the aging arc. If you go toward the end of the day, they may be more likely to have enough bottles open for an interesting vertical such as this one.   

Patriarch- Merlot dominated Bordeaux blend. Cab 35, Cab Franc 10. Intense black fruit and earth on the nose (I kinda got it), tones of anise, cinnamon and clove, yes, clove.

Apparently, there are short chain and long chain tannins (this from Neil who disavowed ownership of the info). Longer chain tannins we feel more on roof, jawline and teeth, shorter chain more under tongue and rear of pallette. (For me, the sharper and tighter the tannin, the younger, the more roof and tongue tip and top), Shorter chain tannins become longer over time as they "polymerize". Natural longer chain tannins come from tannic structures that create the more textural aspects, e.g. "all-over mouth feel". Shorter chain tannins create more focused feel on one or fewer parts of the mouth. This is more an interpretation than a quote. I'm dizzy. Actually, I'm a little tipsy.