I've surprisingly dedicated a lot of posts on this sub to a winery that up until last night, I have largely not been a fan of.
I have been drawn to it because of its reputation but also because it's atmosphere runs counter to the typical resort type feeling you get from typical Napa wineries. My biggest issue with Mayacamas cabs in the past have been their offputting acidity. I just couldn't bear, even tasting one's going back to 2008. I tried there 2011 and just hated it.
So I approached this one with deep trepidation. And happily, I left with a wonderful experience.
by Think-Culture-4740
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Decanted it for 3 plus hours. First whiff I couldn’t really smell anything. An hour later, got some earth smells but no fruit. That’s been my other criticism about this wine – I don’t get enough fruit out of it.
By hour 3, I took a sip. The acidity was still there but the tanins were not and I could very faint hints of ripe fruit and a bit of coffee. But again, the acidity overwhelmed those notes. I was again, still disappointed.
Five hours past – the thing had finally opened up. And oh my God, there it was! I got these beautiful notes, like a combination of cassis and raspberries. Fresh and bright without much tartness and nothing I would describe as jammy. The background notes were there too – maybe something like dark chocolate? That’s the thing – it had some very subtle background notes that I had to really search to identify. They were there, just faint enough to feel their presence without being too obvious. It was so restraint in its showing.
And of course, now that famous acidity was welcome and very enjoyable. At last, I was a fan!
One thing I found interesting. People have compared this to BDX, but in my limited experience, it hasn’t resembled any BDX I’ve had so far. To be fair, the notable ones include a 2016 Giscours and a 2005 Pichon Lalande. Both of those had much more body and more pronounced flavors. The Giscours had more of the baked unctuous fruit coming forward while the Lalande had these funny peppery notes amidst a sea of other flavors. That wine had me stumped to gather all of the different notes And neither had Maya’s trademark acidity.
Their stuff from the 90s is drinking extremely well right now. I can’t get enough of their Pinot noir. I would try more from this era and older. Personally I think their newer vintages need more time in the bottle but many like to drink now