Eden Valley 14.0% Screwcap $40 Source: Sample
“The soil of a man’s heart is stonier. A man grows what he can, and tends it.”- Jud Crandell in Stephen King’s Pet Semetary.
Well this is a wine made by a woman, Gill Radford to be precise. But the genderfication of wines troubles me so I’m happy to make the whole issue murkier. Plus the line jumped into my head as the stony side of the wine was clearly apparent on first pour.
It’s a stunner, improving over two days of tasting and until the bottle was empty. Quietly intense and possessing unwavering focus.
The emphasis is on black and blue fruit flecked with regional boysenberry, along with a stony mineral quality. Polished oak has been used with great intelligence and the whole package is built around a faultless structure; lovely acidity and long fine tannins that accompany a finish that is lit up with white pepper. Needs time in the decanter to really express itself, but the quality is pretty clear straight from the bottle. A sophisticated, textural wine and one that is a monty for the cellar.
Winery Website- http://www.radfordwines.com/