Another "A is for.. " Albertina-Review of "02 Cabernet Sauvignon

Under promise. Over deliver. I plucked this bottle from the garage wine looking for novelty and something that wouldn't taste nasty. What a nice surprise! A kinder, gentler cab it frisked out of the bottle with a pronounced raspberry jam flavor and a smoothness of tannin that was tasty on its own and also played nicely with food. The label reads it was aged in small barrels of French, American and Hungarian oak for 20 months. The initial raspberry smoothed to a more black currant-y taste. After about 2 hours, the flavors opened up to chocolate covered cherry and spice with a hint of woodsy goodness. Even the next day (after assiduous Vacu-vinning but no fridge), the essential character was still round and fruity. It developed the most interesting taste of violets on the mid palate. I liked it. I guess so did the Chronicle wine people who gave it a bronze medal. I think it will be difficult to track down another bottle as the production was only 475 cases. More about the winemaker here: http://www.gomendo.com/showrecord.asp?id=697 . Sounds like a great place to visit!