2018 Clos Solene Cuvée Jean
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Tasting notes
A wine that flirts with perfection is the 2018 Cuvee Jean, which comes all from Bien Nacido Vineyard in the Santa Maria Valley. Cornas-like notes of ground pepper, smoked game, liquid violets, and iodine all emerge from the glass, and it’s full-bodied and perfectly balanced, with building tannins and a great finish. Don’t miss it! Based on Syrah with a splash of Viognier, this pure, seamless, insanely good red will shine for 10-15 years.
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Average Score
Jeb Dunnuck
Josh Raynolds
More reviews and scores
Glass-staining purple. Intense aromas of cassis, blackberry, cherry cola, candied violet and licorice are complemented by a smoky mineral top-note. Sappy and subtly sweet, offering concentrated dark berry and cherry preserve, floral pastille, mocha and spice-cake flavors that show superb energy and tension. Finishes extremely long and spicy, with youthfully chewy tannins and resonating florality.
The 2018 Cuvée Jean is made from 97% Syrah and 3% Viognier from the Z and X blocks of the Bien Nacido vineyard. It was co-fermented and aged 22 months in 30% new oak. Deep ruby-purple, it's super aromatic, the nose exploding to cassis, boysenberry, crushed peppercorn, pure violet, tar and licorice. The full-bodied palate is packed with flavor but avoids too much density/ripe character, finishing fresh and long. It's a classically styled Syrah that drinks well now but has the structure and fruit to age well in bottle over the next 10-15 years. 200 cases were made.