Joel Gott 815 Cabernet, Tait Ball Buster, and Cline Ancient Vines Zinfandel

While having dinner with a good friend of mine (she's in the wine industry) we ordered a flight of three red wines.  Two were a quite tasty and one disappointing.  

Joel Gott 815 Cabernet is from California, and was a new wine for both of us.  Very good.  The aroma was a glorious chocolate and cherry.  The flavor was cherry, chocolate and spice.  Tannins were soft and the wine nicely balanced.  I could have sipped on this all night.  We both enjoyed it. 
 
Winemaker's Notes:  The 2008 Joel Gott 815 California Cabernet Sauvignon is ripe with blueberry, cherry soda, and dark cherry. The aromas burst with violet, vanilla, cedar, chocolate and cinnamon spice. Soft ripe tannins result in a balanced and long velvety finish. 

 Tait Winery is in The Barossa Valley, South Australia.  Ball Buster is their red blend (76% Shiraz, 12% Cabernet Sauvignon, and 12% Merlot) .  I never tasted this wine before and my girlfriend said I had to try it; this is one of her favorites.  A delicious aroma and flavor of dark fruit and spice.  The wine was perfect.   

Winemaker's Notes:  Opaque purple-colored, it offers up a fragrant perfume of pencil led, licorice, spice box, blueberry and blackberry liqueur.  Layered, savory, and long on the palate, this well balance, pleasure-bent effor will drink well for another 4 - 6 years.

Lastly, Cline Ancient Vines Zinfandel from California.  We both had this before, loved it, and wanted to taste it again.  I must say it was a disappointment for us.  The mouthfeel was thin and the flavor was lackluster. It was not that wonderful, full-body Zinfandel one expects when drinking an "old vine" Zinfandel.   

 Winemaker's Notes:  The 2009 Ancient Vines Zinfandel shows wonderful, fat strawberry, with coffee and chocolate characters. Aging in new and used wood has lent this wine a subtle vanilla quality that nicely complements the explosive fruit notes.