Colour
Vivid deep plum-red
Nose
Mulberry, loganberry, blackberry fruits leap forward, front and centre.
A zabaglione al caffé creamy/caffeinated lift.
Multiple swirls of the glass later - demi-glace and dried herb notes reluctantly teased out.
Omnipresent - cedar-mahogany French polish …from oak. Black boot polish, black liquorice and aniseed … from fruit. Cinnamon butter … from? Beckons.
Taste
Medium-bodied.
Red fruits – cranberry, pomegranate, raspberry pips a savoury edge.
Creamy, naturally balanced by an interplay of acidity and extract. Madagascar vanillin and juniper enliven the package. Silky tannins induce a finely-layered and almost chalky edge.
Back-palate succulence, yet on the actual finish – a tactile cool ‘lift’… and Vietnamese mint?