I have been a fan of this winery's Pinot Noir, but I have not seen the newest offerings. However, I do have enthusiastic tasting notes on Stonestreet's other red wines. The 1994 and 1995 vintages are similar in character, as both were years with exceptionally long hang times for the grapes (always a positive sign.) Both wines possess a chocolatey, smoky, cassis, lavishly wooded character, juicy, succulent, full-bodied personalities, and plenty of length, extract, and fruit. Both are also remarkably seamless wines with immense potential. Because of their low acidity and ostentatious personalities, these wines will be flattering to drink young, but will easily last for 12-15 years.Stonestreet's proprietary red wine called Legacy has proven to be not only a wine of exceptional quality, but one of remarkable consistency over the last three vintages. The blend can vary (the 1993 is a blend of 70% Cabernet Sauvignon, 20% Merlot, 10% Cabernet Franc), to one less marked by Cabernet Sauvignon (the 1994 is a blend of 51% Cabernet Sauvignon, 39% Merlot, 9% Cabernet Franc, 1% Petite Verdot). The 1995 is composed of 59% Cabernet Sauvignon, 23% Cabernet Franc, 17% Merlot, and 1% Petite Verdot. All of these wines are aged for 20-23 months in 100% new French oak barrels, and are bottled unfined and unfiltered. I found them to be flamboyant, opulently-textured, rich, expressive, and dramatic proprietary reds that are loaded with character. Moreover, they possess 10-20 years of aging potential. The 1994 and 1995 may merit higher scores with more aging.Stonestreet is a 40,000 case production winery that is part of the Kendall-Jackson umbrella organization known as Artisans and Estates. The wines to date have been impressive, and as the tasting notes in this article exhibit, upcoming releases are equally convincing. This winery has done an excellent job with Chardonnay, Pinot Noir, Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon, and their proprietary red wine called Legacy. All of Stonestreet's 90 acres of vineyards are located in the Alexander Valley. The property, purchased by Jess Jackson in 1989, seems to have immense potential, as evidenced by the following wines, all of which were made by the talented Steve Test. One has to admire Test's simplistic goals of producing wines that possess "richness, depth, balance, power, suppleness, and delicacy." This winery is doing everything right, making it one of the superstar producers in the Jess Jackson-owned group of small estate wineries collectively known as Artisans and Estates.Tel. (707) 263-9333; fax (707) 263-6817 (Kendall-Jackson)
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