Maryhill Proprietor’s Reserve Serendipity Red Wine 3-Pack
$67.99 $132.00 48% off List Price
2008 Proprieter’s Reserve Serendipity Red Wine
A bottle of this showed up today. I’m still at the office and so I’ll crack it open as soon as I get home and report first impressions.
In the daytime Mary Hill was a teaser
Come the night she was such a pleaser
Mary Hill was such a thrill after dark
In Cherry Hill Park
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[LABRAT]
Wow…no comments thus far!
Finally got home, found some smaller containers. So right after opening, half went into a 375 ml, and a quarter into a 187 ml for further evaluation tomorrow. Both are sealed.
The bottle arrived this morning at 11:30am, 12 hours ago. It’s been standing upright since arrival. Even while decanting into the smaller bottles the nose of flowery plum was wafting up from the wine. Pretty. Nice start.
Next - colour. Red-purple. Not quite as red as, say, a Sangiovese. Lighter in colour than your average Bordeaux blend from CA or WA. If you hold the glass at an angle the colour vanishes toward the meniscus at the edge. No noticeable bricking. The wine was disturbed by the shipping, there is definitely some sediment in my glass. Since my glass is from the end of the bottle that is unsurprising.
Ok, on to the aromas. First off the flowers and fruit. The fruit is in the red spectrum - raspberry, cherry, and maybe red currant. A hint of heat comes and goes. There’s something very savoury and herbaceous on the nose as well - maybe sage? Thyme? The aroma wheel is helpful here - I might say the faintest hint of bell pepper plus a dose of fresh (not cooked) green beans. I keep looking for something like basil/mint/eucalyptus but not getting it at the moment. There’s also a woodsy/tobacco note to the nose. Maybe from the oak, although I’m not sensing any vanilla or butterscotch. There’s also something I can’t quite make out that adds another savoury note to the nose.
Based on the age, appearance, and the nose, I’d say some secondary characteristics are starting to emerge on this one.
Time to actually taste! Palate is surprisingly astringent. Medium bodied. Medium/high acidity. Restrained - definitely not a fruit bomb, and likely wasn’t one in its youth either. Flavours are more in line with tobacco, wood, and earthy. As I’m having a few more sips, I’m getting some of the red cherry and currant from the nose, along with strawberry.
Finish is long. I’m getting a lot of anise. Hints of smoke. The flowers make another appearance.
So. First impressions. This isn’t a huge Washington Cabernet/Bdx blend. This is meant to be more balanced and nuanced than that. It’s also not a wine that requires steak. I could easily see it going well in places you might use a lighter Brunello, actually. It has enough similarity between the medium body, cherries, and earth to make a decent substitute. If you’re like me it’s also a sipping wine, but most people would probably prefer something a little more rounded and less acidic for their “porch wine”. Actually, looking at the specs on woot, I would never have guessed this had a pH north of 3.8. I guess the higher TA keeps the perceived acidity high.
With the second glass I am noticing more of the oak effect. A bit more clear evidence of vanilla and butterscotch. I am curious what will happen with this wine tomorrow. I wouldn’t be surprised if it falls apart or if it blows off some of the oak and the flowers come back out. We shall see. A few more sips and then it’s time for bed.
Question for the winery, since this is a 2008 wine, is this a drink this year wine, or how much longer could one cellar it?
Another review from 2011, this one from Beverage Tasting Institute:
Maryhill 2008 Proprietor’s Reserve, “Serendipity”, Columbia Valley
Gold Medal
Exceptional
Category: Bordeaux Varietal Blend
Tasted In: 2011 Country: USA Alcohol: 14.1%
“Deep ruby garnet color. Aromas of salty roasted nuts, tar, roasted tomatoes and warm berry compote with a supple dryish medium-to-full body and a long, tangy cocoa and earth finish. A seriously structured table wine.”
Thanks for the notes Klez.
Where’s the breakfast notes though?
What a difference a day makes. A Clark hangover?
Not much CT action on any vintages of this to help out either. Thanks also for the notes, and waiting for part B.
Hah, I think that’s exactly what it is. PCS Post Clark Syndrome.
I’m guessing there may not be a whole lot more upside to this. We’ll see how the rest of the bottle fares later today.
Tempting…I wonder how it pairs with my morning espresso.
I’m guessing it would taste just like yesterday but with a hint of espresso bean.
Hi! We recommend this wine as a “Drink now!” rather than cellaring it. It’s delicious!
This distinctive “Bordeaux” style blend is intense and brooding with its dark black fruit which lead to palate filling flavors of dark chocolate and black cherry on the long, clean finish. Serendipity, much like the story of Maryhill Winery, is a combination of characters, influences, dreams and passions……a wine that was meant to be. We hope you enjoy it!
Giving y’all an update. Just got home and re-opened the 187 ml bottle. Initial wave of flowery plum, just like at pnp last night. Needs some air to come back into this world, it seems. But initial impressions are very similar to last night. Given that it had little to no air exposure it’s not that surprising. Since the write-up mentions dark chocolate, I figure I should mention I think that’s one of the notes I hadn’t quite recognized. It’s more like dark cocoa than chocolate…unless you are accustomed to those 99% cocoa bars. I’ll be back with more later…
Info post:
All tasting notes for this wine have been cross posted into CT under user name wine.woot_taster. User names have been removed to protect the guilty. PM me if you want your tasting note removed or user name added back.
Thanks and back to the wineing.