2003 Quilceda Creek Red Wine

2003 Quilceda Creek Red Wine

I am heading to a barbeque tonight and my hosts are huge California Cabernet fans. While the above wine is actually a Washington wine I think that it will hold its own tonight when it squares off with the likes of Silver Oak, Ridge and Staglin. This wine happens to be the "2nd" wine of Quilceda Creek. Its Daddy was scored a perfect 100pts. by no less than Robert Parker. Below is Parker's notes. When I get back from the party I will post my own notes.

Robert Parker's Wine Advocate: 92 points "The finest Red Wine the Golitzens have fashioned to date, the 2003 (1,300 cases) is an assemblage of 88% Cabernet Sauvignon, 9% Cabernet Franc, and 3% Merlot. It bursts from the glass with black currants, violets, blackberries, and notes of dark cherries. Dense, medium-bodied, silky-textured, and intense, this black fruit-packed wine bears Quilceda Creek’s trademark marriage of power with elegance and sweet tannin. Projected maturity: now-2020. Congratulations Alex and Paul, welcome to the big leagues."

Norm's notes: Very, very ripe (maybe overripe) dark purple fruit. Some spice on the nose but a hint of decay (like when you leave blackberries on the counter and they begin to mold). Big bodied wine that verged on being flabby. A decent finish but I wanted more balance and structure from this wine. I was expecting Kathleen Turner in her prime and I wound up with Anna Nicole Smith before she went on her diet.
If I am scoring this, I'll give it 84pts. At $35/bottle you can do much better for your $.