1986 Ravenswood Pickberry Vineyard
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Tasting notes
The 1986 Pickberry Vineyard is utterly captivating from the very first taste. Remarkably deep, especially for a wine of its age, the 1986 is simply magnificent. A whole range of cedar, smoke, tobacco and black olive notes race across the palate. Powerful, resonant and structured, the 1986 is at a glorious peak of expression today. Even with quite a bit of time in the glass, the 1986 remains incredibly rich and deep, which is remarkable given that these vines were just four years old at the time! Joel Peterson opted for an unusual blend of 50% Cabernet Sauvignon, 40% Cabernet Franc and 10% Merlot, and the Franc really seems to add an element of spice that is unusual in Sonoma Bordeaux blends. More than anything else though, the 1986 Pickberry Vineyard is a wine of pure and total sensory pleasure that shows just how pedigreed Sonoma’s best sites are. Readers lucky enough to own it can look forward to another decade of exceptional drinking.
Critic scores
Average Score
Robert Parker
Antonio Galloni, Vinous
More reviews and scores
This deep garnet-colored wine has an opaque middle with light amber hues beginning to creep in at the edge. The bold, flamboyant nose of roasted coffee, chocolate, black olives, sweet oak, and black fruits explodes from the glass. Full-bodied, muscular, and highly extracted, with noticeably coarse tannin, this is an in-your-face, aggressive, highly concentrated wine that can be drunk now, but ideally needs 1-2 more years of cellaring. It should keep for another 15-20 years. The tasting notes for this section are from two single blind tastings, one conducted in May, 1996, in California, and the other in June, 1996, in Baltimore.