
Wine Specs
Vintage
2012
Varietal
39% Mourvèdre, 33% Grenache, 26% Syrah, 2% Cinsaut
Appellation
Central Coast
TA
5.5 g/L
pH
3.61
Aging
Drinkable upon release (April 2016). Ideally hold for a year or two, 15-20+ years ageability
Serving Temperature
58° F
Label Artist
Chuck House
Alcohol %
13.5
Wine Enthusiast
92
James Suckling
90
Vinous
92
Planet Grape
93
2012 Le Cigare Volant Réserve “en bonbonne"
This item is currently out of stock
$60.00 per bottle / $648.00 per case
$51.00 per bottle / $576.00 per case (Members)
Wine Profile
Tasting Notes
Incredibly exotic, truffled/toasted almond, verging on coconut(!) nose, with the Platonic essence of drupe (or stone) fruit pulsing in the background. On the palate, very soft, plush tannins, great savoriness (of course), clean acidity and an endless finish. This is a wine that is built for the ages; there is seemingly still tons of fruit and a vibrant life-force to carry it for many years to come. The wine can be paired with any number of the usual suspects (game birds, lamb, venison), but maybe at its best with simpler fare (just cheese?), as a kind of (guided) meditation wine.
Awards
#2, 50 Best Wines of 2016 - VinePair
Vineyard Notes
Del Barba Vineyard in Contra Costa is dry farmed and our primary source for 100+ year-old vine mourvèdre in the Cigare blend. Alta Loma Vineyard in Monterey is our primary source for organically farmed, “weapons-grade" grenache. This vintage has the inclusion of Rancho Solo Vineyard grenache (our former estate vineyard, formerly Ca' del Solo) in Soledad. Bien Nacido in Santa Maria is our source for Cigare-quality Syrah, farmed using Biodynamic® practices. We source our Cinsaut from the acclaimed Bechthold Vineyard (aka Woock) in Lodi, CA, arguably California's oldest vineyard.
Food Pairing Notes
Pan seared lamb chops with rosemary & garlic, duck liver pâté, grilled quail, venison steak.
Production
840 cases
Other Notes
"The reserve bottling of Bonny Doon Vineyard’s flagship red is raised in twenty-liter glass carboys rather than neutral wood. This treatment is designed to exclude oxygen while increasing lees exposure, and to build savoriness into the wine without oak influences.
In the 2012 vintage, the blend is about forty percent Mourvèdre, one-third Grenache, one-quarter Syrah, and a tiny fraction of Cinsault. It’s a saturated black cherry color and feels closed at first, delivering a whiff of earthy funk—not unexpected given the élevage and screw cap bottling. But with an hour or so of air it flowers into anise and anisette, purple petals, and red cherries. Its suggestion of cured meats and smoked red fruits gets sliced by a bright blade of acid. A wine that can deliver refreshment after rich or gamy meats and aged cheeses." - Meg Houston Maker, Maker's Table, December 13, 2016