We are happy that Bernard, who has sampled so many wines, has shared his notes with us. We do have, or have had for sale a few of the wines Bernard writes about, and we include a link to our stock page whenever it is a producer we carry (but since the stock page is kept up-to-date and the wines are sold, don't expect any but the newest of wines to show up in our stock!). Mostly though, since we specialize in County of Santa Barbara Wine and Central Coast Wine, we don't carry a lot of the wines Bernard writes about. But we think it is important that you be able to have an idea what they're like in case you are planning to buy some somewhere, or have them in your own collection. Enjoy.

Here are Bernard's notes from June 23, 2001:

Fast-forward to June 23, 2001. In conjunction with the infamous and inimitable Todd Serota (aka Todd Serota), who chose to sponsor the tasting to kick-off his fledgling high-end wine business (aka Vinoquest), several other vintages of Unico were kicked in to flesh out the tasting. Seth flew in from MD and we agreed to pitch in a bottle of 75 Unico we had co-bought at auction. Todd took over financial and organizational responsibility for the tasting and provided several of the Unicos including the other Especial, the ringers, and most of the other wines served at the meal. The low-key atmosphere of Rockenwägner Restaurant in Santa Monica was perfectly suited to the tasting, which began at 11 am.

Altogether we had 10 different Unicos and two ringers. Because of sediment, I decanted the ringers about 9:30. The Unicos did not appear to have sediment, probably because they are held in barrel so long that significant amount of solids falls out before bottling. The 82 Haut Brion was funneled into a cab bottle so its shape would not be a give away. All bottles were then bagged, uncorked, and switched around so they could be served blind. As a side note, Especial is considered VS’s top wine. It is a blend of several vintages of Unico, held back longer than the vintage Unico, and is released only very sporadically. It is thus very rare. Due to its status, VS bottles Especial in a frosted glass bottle that also has the same raised seal as the clear Unico bottle. But the top inch of the Especial bottle, from lip down, is smooth glass like the regular bottle. When bagged and taped, it is not possible to differentiate one from the other.

Unico is usually predominantly temperanillo, with cabernet sauvignon, malbec, merlot and albillo constituting the other blending varietals. As in Bordeaux, the mix varies with vintage. Someone at the tasting believed that cabernet might dominate temperanillo in certain vintages, but I have not seen independent verification. As a classic, old world wine of deserved stature, Unico tends to be higher acid than is currently trendy in international styled wines. Neophyte Unico drinkers need to be able to make the mental shift to appreciate the style.

Wines were poured in flights of six in the following (blind) order.
 

• 62 Unico—Older color, light brick rim with slight orange. Sweet red cherry, leather aromas. Bouquet initially somewhat faded, but improves in glass over time. Older flavors, bit dried out cherry, orange. High acid. Not especially tannic. Clean, high acid finish with a bit of lingering resin. A classy wine, but now a little over the hill. 91/100
• 90 Unico—Youngish color. More closed nose, minty, cherry. Flavors of black cherry, black licorice, plum. Big, chewy, grippy tannins. Strong cab-like flavors. Shows young. Long, chewy, bit clunky finish. Could age another 10 years easily. 91
• Reserva Especial Lot 004/96—Slight lightening at the rim. Looks older. Smoky, old Bordeaux-like with pipe tobacco, cherry, licorice, cedar, high-toned old black cherry. Smooth, cherry liqueur, rosiny. Definite older flavors. High acid, very long finish. Perfect elegance! 94
• 85 Unico—Also seems older color. More high-toned, orange peel, caramel, dry cherry bouquet. Smoother attack than the previous wines. But then more grip, vanilla, cherry cola, older cocoa crème. Very long, classy, persistent with resin. 93
• 78 Phelps Eisele—Bit old color. Lovely, classy, like old Bordeaux. Sweet bouquet, with mint, menthol. Sweet cherry fruit, perhaps a bit cooked, older flavors. Somewhat musty, some tannins. Then after maybe 20 minutes in glass, a transformation. Improves and begins to resemble a classy older claret. Fnishes with very chewy tannins. Very long, classy. A gem. 97
• 75 Unico—Slight bricking. Not much bouquet. Some dried cherry, some floral perfume. Bit tomatoey, soft, smooth, sour cherry, some chalky tannins. Classy old wine. Finished with puckery acid, so should go better with food (it did). Classy wine. 90

• 81 Unico—Normal color. Slight sulfury aroma blows off, then rich black cherry. Really creamy, smooth, yummy. Sweet cherry, candied apple. After a while, becomes very harmonious. Very long, persistent finish with menthol. Wonderful and classy. 95+
• Reserva Especial Lot 012/97—Normal color. Musty, gradually blows off. More high-toned menthol. Really zingy, high acid, cherry. Lacking complexity of other bottles here, but yummy. Crisp, clean finish with lovely acid structure. Tastes like a younger wine. 93
• 70 Unico—Slight bricking. Some initial signs of reduction, menthol. Older cooked cherry, cedar, leather. Soft, creamy, older fruit. Lot of tertiary character. Caramel, burnt orange. All in harmony. Lovely finish, if tasting a bit cooked, but elegant. Maybe a bit OTH, but lovely. 93
• 68 Unico—Normal color. Reduced, swamp gas, sulfury. Cleans up in 10 minutes. Then dried cherry, leather. Sweet, yummy, good balance of acid, tannin. Lots of complex, old bottle character. Classic. Bit pruny. Long, chewy, finish with chalky tannins. Harmonious. Another gem. 95
• 82 Haut Brion—Medium garnet with bricking. Older bouquet with cherry, some high-toned menthol, band-aid. Medicinal. Very medicinal flavor, old, cherry, resin. Not fun! Too much bad oak? Band-aid finish. Not good. An off bottle? 78
• 86 Unico—Normal color. Stinky, almost Rhonish. Earthy, smelly. Really nice and evolves to perfect bouquet. Classy, balanced. Chewy, chalky tannins, black cherry. Primary now, but balanced throughout. Lovely finish. Young, but will be great. 98(+?)

Lunch was then served. With the first two courses (Warm Lobster Salad with Fava Beans, Sherry Vinaigrette and Romesco Sauce, then Marinated White Asparagus with Prime Beef Carpaccio and Grated Fresh Wasabi) Todd poured:

96 Kistler Chardonnay Cuvee Cathleen—Medium straw color. Oak nose, hay, perky, lemony, butterscotch. Yummy. Very typical Kistler style. Mineral, citrus. Butter. Acid could be higher with crisper finish. Some flinty mineral in finish. Great delicacy in this wine. 94

96 Verget Corton-Charlemagne—Medium straw color. Crystalline mineral, grapefruit peel bouquet. Creamy, steely, calciferous. White fruit. Excellent balance. Delicate, long, crisp. Needs time, and I prefer more acidity at this stage. 95+

98 Kistler Chardonnay Hyde Vineyard (thanks to Tom Cahill who brought this one) —Medium straw color. Losts of char, toasty oak… the kind I like! Cream, mineral. Truly spectacular. Pôire William flavor. Very long, delicate finish. Classy. 94(+?)

The next two courses were Veal Tenderloin with Morels and Steamed White Asparagus, then Roasted Filet Mignon with Frisée Salad, Grapes, Blue Cheese and Red Wine Reduction. These went very well with the leftover red wines from the tasting. One additional wine was served non-blind…

76 Torres Gran Coronas Black Label (100% cabernet sauvignon)—Old, medium bricking. Older caramelized cherry. Complex stewed nose. Creamy, high acid, stewed tomato, orange. Smooth. Oaky finish with menthol. OTH, with slow fade. 88-

Before dessert was served, Todd served one of his favorite sweet wines.

95 Ch. Tirecul Cuvee Madame—Medium gold. Honeyed bouquet, beeswax, lanolin, apricot, tuberose, rose. Perfect balance, not over-botrytised. Honey, sharlyn melon, apple tarte tatin, mandarin. Could have more zip, though. Long, creamy finish with slight bitter edge. 96(+?)

It has been a long while (500+ years), but it is time once again for a Spanish expulsion-style, Merano-inspired bloody pulpit.

It is a daunting task to find ringers to put into a Unico tasting, with Unico surely one of the most individual of wines in the world. But its similar structure to classic older claret and its use of cabernet headed Todd in that direction. The group did not too bad in finding the ringers, and both Todd and I thought #2 (90 Unico) was clearly cab-like, with the minty nose a giveaway for the Eisele. Boy did we screw up, as #5 (the Phelps) also showed minty and cab character. I thought #12 (86 Unico) was an odd-ball with its Rhonish nose, and incorrectly pegged it for the other ringer (Haut Brion) which came across as clearly defective. Its medicinal quality resembled to resin-quality found in many of the Unicos.

Unico connoisseurs generally regard the Especial as their favored wine from VS. With the overwhelming vote of the group (I think 12 first place votes out of 15), the Lot 004/96 seems to uphold that stature. I wish it were simple to find more. (blil: HELP!)

The group vote also seemed to uphold the deserved reputations of the 68 and 70, though I thought the 70 was a slightly off bottle.

Todd seemed to think the 62 was an off bottle, maybe improperly stored before his purchase. The 62 allegedly is a great vintage, so I might expect a better stored bottle to have more life in it. Still, scoring it 91 points, I found it still showing a lot of character.

I had previously had the 85 from another source, and it seemed a fresher bottle than this. I was surprised by this 85 showing older than it should. 85 will never be a great wine, but good bottles are a pleasure, perhaps VS’s slightest nod to modern tastes, though it still displays the telltale resiny signature.

This was my first time with the 78 Phelps Eisele. Despite its initial off-aromas, it came around magically to show what a great wine it is. I’m fortunate to be pouring this again this month at a blind tasting, so I’ll see how consistent the bottles are. One more piece of evidence that vineyard track record is a relevant factor in wine buying strategy. I don’t know where Bryant and Harlan will be in 20 years, but I have confidence that Araujo will still be showing well in its older age.

Among the other vintages, I have high hopes for the 81 and 86 vintages, if only I could score some more bottles at a reasonable price. (blil, are you still there?)