1994 Dalla Valle Maya

A rich, dense wine, the 1994 Maya hits the palate with an exotic melange of dark cherry, smoke, plum, melted road tar and orange zest. This is oneof the more obviously ripe, opulent wines among the early Mayas, but all the elements are in the right place. A decidedly flashy Maya, the 1994 will drink well for another decade or more.

The 1994 Maya is prodigious. The color is saturated opaque purple. The wine offers up restrained but gorgeously sweet earth, oak, mineral, and black fruit aromas. Full-bodied, with substantial quantities of glycerin and extract, this wine's large-scaled tannin seems to be well-submerged beneath the wine's fabulous layers of fruit. Although more accessible than I would have thought prior to bottling, it is a candidate for 20-30 years of evolution. I don't think I need to reinforce the fact that these offerings are extremely difficult to find, but isn't that the way it always is with such extraordinary wines? Tel. (707) 944-2676; Fax (707) 944-8411

The 1994 Maya is prodigious. The color is saturated opaque purple. The wine offers up restrained but gorgeously sweet earth, oak, mineral, and black fruit aromas. Full-bodied, with substantial quantities of glycerin and extract, this wine's large-scaled tannin seems to be well-submerged beneath the wine's fabulous layers of fruit. Although more accessible than I would have thought prior to bottling, it is a candidate for 20-30 years of evolution.||I don't think I need to reinforce the fact that these offerings are extremely difficult to find, but isn't that the way it always is with such extraordinary wines?||Tel. (707) 944-2676; Fax (707) 944-8411 Wine Advocate.December, 1997