May 28, 2008

Ridgepoint Wines 2004 Cabernet Merlot


(Re-Tasted May 2008) …
This review is painful to write. I know Mauro, owner of Ridgepoin
t, a very friendly and congenial person. I know Arthur Harder, a very good winemaker who has made plenty of award winning wines here in Ontario. But this 2004 Cabernet-Merlot I don’t know, nor do I want to. I remember liking it very much – which is why I set it down for a few years – but unfortunately, it has not stood the test of time. First, there’s the agglomerate cork (crushed up pieces glued together to form a re-constituted cork) … the wine was halfway up this closure. The smell was wet newspaper and cardboardy with just a hint of the former blackberries that used to be a hallmark of this wine. Taste was no better – a funny burnt-cracker-like taste, a bit gluey, flat and unappealing … sorry boys, this one’s corked and the glue has seeped into the wine. Yuck. Might I suggest better quality corks for future vintages, especially those built to last. I seem to have another bottle of this – I’ll take another look/taste and get back to you about it.

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