Davis Family Vineyards Barn D'or Cab/Syrah Blend 2006 - 96.42

I nabbed the Barn D'or packaged with two single vineyard Davis Family pinots that I had been itching to try after my previous experience with the Davis Family pinot (which was superb). The blend of Cabernet Sauvignon and Syrah (62 and 38 percent respectively) seemed like a winning combination, even though sonoma-side cabernets typically aren't as rich or well-rounded compared to what's produced on the other side of the hill.

The Barn D'or is intentionally held by the winery a year in bottle before release, after two years of barrel aging (one year the varietals are separated, the next year the final blend shares a barrel). Perhaps they should hold the bottles longer - the oak was overwhelming, both on the nose and the palette, and the wine needed hours to open up. This wine needs heavy decatnting, as after two hours of aerating in the glass, dark berries were revealed but still overshadowed by a one-note creamy vanilla flavor. I imagine at least 4 or 5 hours of decanting would be necessary for the oak-induced flavors to blow off. After consuming about a glass, I plugged up the remainder and stored it in the fridge.

Day 2 passed without a chance to sample, but on Day 3, the creamy oak overtones were removed and revealed what I would deem the typical Sonoma cabernet flavor. The tannins were soft at this point, the oak removed, and a dusty mouthfeel showed a bit of wood and muted dark berries with plum. Overall, the wine seems to have potential, but is far too uneven to show well this young. I plan to open my second bottle no sooner than 3 years.

$25, 87 points, 96.42 PDI