Just opened the my second bottle of this last weekend and was amazed by the quality difference compared to a year ago!
Silky smooth after about 45 minutes in a decanter, complex flavors but not overwhelming, great finish that prompted you to drink more and more… Suffices to say, the bottle did not last long.
Now, debating how many more I should order even though I have only a few open spaces in my overflow rack.
Just to agree with the other comments. This bottle really improved with time. I sipped on this over the course of the past year (had one about two weeks ago) and you could really tell the difference over time. It is tasting very good now.
That’s why for the TWAS set, I ordered 12 bottles and will let them sit for at least 6 months and then have a nice everyday wine.
Agree with above comments. I didn’t care for it when it arrived last year. I opened one or two during the year and it was improving, mellowing. Haven’t opened one recently though.
Have we been told this is from the same batch as last years offer? Or is this THIS year’s Adequate Gift that still needs a year of bottle aging to be better than “MEH”?
Of course, if richardhod is “in the know”, then THIS would be the notice.
PS - I know the label shows it as being the same vintage as last time, but I prefer real confirmation that the pics aren’t from last year as well!
I think the great math philosophers of our time would agree that 1 / goofy = quite tasty.
Funnily enough I had wondered this too. I think thought that they only make one batch of all of their woot wines. Furthermore, this one wasn’t well-received last year, and was only wooted once, whereas others get multiple wootings on wootoffs etc, so I suspect it was kept back til the holidays to let it knit together.
Another reason for thinking this is the same batch is that they’ve created a couple or more of new woot wines since then, so why would they go backwards to a less-successful blend? So, they just cellared it til it came of age and recovered from bottle shock!
Love the blend (Carignan is a splendidly underrated grape), but I’d need it here by Saturday, not Christmas. Oh bother.
Well, also - I would imagine it’s from the same bottling, simply because it wouldn’t make sense to sell a holiday-themed wine in the middle of the year. 
Bought a dozen of these last year. It is a very unique blend for me, my palette did not know what to make of it, at first. I popped a few bottles in the first month or so and, it was just too tight and muddled.
I didn’t touch another bottle for several months and, since then, it has really improved. If you are strictly a big 3 drinker (Cab/Merlot/Zin), you need to put on your tasting cap to appreciate this one. I pick up the Zin in it right away but, there are a lot of non-fruit flavors to explore. Not earthy but, very bold. An enjoyable tasting experience that can hold it’s own against pretty much whatever hearty food you pair it with.
Another positive to note is that it has a good tannic structure, it holds well over 48 hrs (if you can’t finish it in one night).
I am curious. There has been a lot of talk about how it has improved, but past experience tends to show that improvement does not always equal good.
So? If you were to open the bottle today for the first time ever, would you say this is a good wine? That it is a sub par blend? Or that it is merely…adequate?
When has Woot or Wine.Woot advertised that they would do something only to have them not deliver on the promise? Seriously. Shipping times are sometimes slow on a normal order, but it’s expected and there’s never been a guarantee that shipping would be fast.
WD is a shipping genius and knows the shipping industry very well. So, if he says by Xmas, I believe it.
Of course…This is all just my own impression…
Good point. I think most casual drinkers would EXPECT that a seasonal offering would be ready NOW. I mean, why offer Vampire and Poizin at Halloween, EHP and Adequate Gift at Christmas, etc if they aren’t ready to drink? Some folks don’t like ‘gimmicky’ wines but isn’t is more ‘gimmicky’ for woot to make an offering like that only to find out that ‘oh yeah, this won’t be drinkable for another year or so’? Especially since so many of these end up as gifts or at parties.
I would think that a comment within the description for a suggested drinking window could be extremely helpful for the casual drinker that doesn’t spend all their time reading the forums, and just buys based on the main page.
Is there any “Twas” left? I tried to find the after-offer link, but nothing worked for me.
One question I have…
In CT the drinking window is set to a max of 2013.
Is that still the right number? WD/Winemaker…Can you give us an update on cellarability? Clearly it’s improving dramatically.
It sold out.
ME TOO!!! I’m gonna lose my house and be the only wino in a cardboard box with over 200 bottles of wine. I’d probably be elected “mayor” of Box City.
Really on the fence on this one. Loved the other Woot Cellar offerings, hence my repeat purchases… However the reviews on this are “should be better now.” I too would LOVE to know if this was/is indeed the same batch from last year.
My better half thinks I have lost my mind with ordering wine-untasted, online. Buying this one just for the name/description seems like a wonderful idea, just to prove me RIGHT (for once, lol).
However would be fun to send up to NY to some wine “snob” (meant in the nicest of ways) friends as well.
Hmm…
Thanks for the info…that’s probably why I couldn’t find a link. I let it settle after I received it, then found out I liked it a lot so wanted to order more. The Barbera really showed nice in the finish. Still have 5 to consume.
Oh well, I’m sure WD will have some other fantastic offer that I’ll bite on!
I’m in again based on last year’s experience. It was decent upon arrival with a little “air time” and did improve a bit during the year. Those who were “gifted” also seemed to appreciate it.
I actually opened a bottle of this last week as I really didn’t like it last year so wanted to let it sit. It is drinking well right now in my opinion but that may be a biased reaction based on my memory of tasting it a year ago. I’m sorry that I didn’t take notes but I will likely be in for an order today.