2013 Carlisle Alicante Bouschet
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Tasting notes
Inky purple, with plenty of blackberry fruit, pepper and incense, the 2013 Alicante Bouschet Pagani Ranch is a blend of 78% Alicante Bouschet and 22% Zinfandel. The Alicante comes from 93-year-old vines, and, while most people think this wine is somewhat neutral, certainly Mike Officer has turned it into something special. Powerful and concentrated, there is black fruit galore. Whether it ever develops into anything more remains to be seen, but the wine is big, full-bodied, savory, and a total hedonistic turn-on to drink over the next decade.
Critic scores
Average Score
Robert Parker
Antonio Galloni, Vinous
More reviews and scores
The 2013 Alicante Bouschet Pagani Ranch is round, juicy and absolutely irresistible. Rose petal, mint and cinnamon add nuance to a core of expressive red stone fruits as this dense, exotic wine reveals its considerable charms. This site was planted in 1920, which in and of itself is pretty remarkable given the fast pace of life in today's world.