2003 Jordan Cabernet Sauvignon (Bonus: Cork Seepage 101)

Good Morning Gentle Readers,

As a yoot with little sense and less money it still seemed readily apparent that The McKooze was off track with his penchant for wining and dining the ladies on the first date. Bought him several books, but all he did was eat the covers.

At six two with a ready grin and the hint of a Texas drawl, the man could have  promised a Hungry Man aluminum clad chicken dinner and the 9.5 babe in Apartment 10 upstairs would have crawled across four miles of broken glass to get there by seven. She'da brought the tequila too.

Had he graced you, Gentle Lovely, with a dinner invitation, you'da likely been drinking something akin to the Jordan Cabernet, a wine as lovely  as you, very smooth and perfect for a night out or a special occasion. You'll often find Jordan on the wine lists of upscale eateries and it remains one of the most widely purchased restaurant wines in the US.

The three inch, walnut-and-stainless pocket knife that doubles as the semi-official foil cutter here at the Casa (is that thing even legal in Californicate?) revealed obvious and worrisome cork seepage, a sure sign that the wine had been mishandled at some point up the distribution chain. While not necessarily a death knell, cork seepage is indicative that the wine has likely been baked.

TWC HOT TIP: Walking out of a tasting room on a hot summer day with a cool bottle of wine that you leave in the car for a couple of hours can induce seepage quickly. The sudden change in temperature causes the wine to expand and forces it past the cork. If the pressure is severe, it can push the cork out of the bottle a quarter inch or more. The antidote is to get the wine into a cool environment quickly. It is also serves as an illustration of why wine appreciates a constant cellar temperature. In a pinch, a five dollar Sams Club cool bag or a cheap Styrofoam ice chest can help protect your  valuable wine from a day of sunshine beating on the trunk lid. Better too cold than too warm.

For today the seepage was benign. In the long term? Might shorten the life expectancy. The Jordan Cabernet is a big  Alexander Valley wine and should be served with something it won't overwhelm, such as a standing rib roast, strong cheese, or a prime rib. We paired it with  mesquite grilled New York strip steak and a Boston salad that Mrs TWC tossed with diced apples and crumbled blue cheese.

Winemaker's Notes:

.....the blending of Merlot, Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot with the Cabernet Sauvignon is responsible for the well integrated flavors, deep color and full mouth feel of the 2003 vintage. The vibrant blueberry qualities of the Petit Verdot marry well with the soft, alluring flavors of Merlot and contribute to the complexity of the masculine, tannic nature of the Cabernet Sauvignon. The 2003 Cabernet is very rich in texture with opulent flavors, a restrained framework of oak and a lingering finish of subtle earth, cigar tobacco and cedar.

All of the above plus a a little pencil lead, which may have been the cedar as well. About $45.00 US.

The verdict? A delightful accompaniment for an intimate dinner, a little Stan Getz, and a cozy fire. In a dozen years it will be ever so much more delightful.
 

The McKooze married that Margie chick from East L.A.  The cholos (El Jeronimo de Crow's Ma woulda called them pachucos)  occasionally expressed their opinion about that with a little graffiti on her garage wall....Gringo, Go Home. Last I heard, he had dragged her off to Texas, and  sometime later signed on with the Dallas franchise of the Boys In Blue. Sometime later still, he got himself shot. Bad guy with a pistola that didn't take kindly to getting stopped by The Man. Not  a permanent enough injury to cause the assumption of room temperature, but I'm guessing it hurt.

As Always,

TWC