Anomaly Vineyards, March 25, 2013

I returned to Anomaly Vineyards to pick up a few half bottles of their new 2010 release, as well as get a chance to preview the wine.  I brought along my friend who manages a wine shop in San Francisco to share the experience.  He had not been to Anomaly in four years since I picked up my 2006 wines.  We were running a few minutes late and so had to skip the facility tour and go straight to the underground tasting room.  I have always enjoyed the intimacy of this tasting room.  From the working barrels lining each wall, to the practical yet immaculate concrete walls and floors, to the elegant wood table and bench seating and halogen spot lighting, the environment puts the taster directly in the midst of the winemaking experience.
 

Different bottle formats on the tasting table at Anomaly Vineyards.



During this visit I was most interested in tasting the 2010 release of the Anomaly Cabernet Sauvignon.  I had read some interesting reviews of the vintage in general and wanted to get a glimpse at how the 2010 Anomaly wines might develop.  At the same time, they poured three other vintages to learn how the Anomaly wines age and to get a kind of progress report on the bottles slumbering in my cellar.  They poured the 2009, 2008, and 2006 vintages.  Each surprised me by altering my expectations.  The 2006 is developing a richness while blowing off (or covering up) its vintage characteristics.  The 2008 is wonderfully approachable now, but still showing promise of more.  The star is the 2009 and its lushness, which is developing in a very similar manner to the 2005, albeit with darker fruit influences on the palette.

 A full review was written already about Anomaly Vineyards during my visit on April 6^th, 2012.