2011 Androkteinos Hudson Vineyards
This is one of our two Wines of Terror. You might remember my end of harvest report from 2011, when there was metaphorical blood on the ground, and rotting fruit going un-harvested. We brought in all of our Hudson Syrah, and all of it was botrytised to some degree and spotted with other interesting molds.
We nonetheless made wines that we were very proud of. As many of my friends had warned me, the maturation of these wines in barrel might reveal flaws hidden in the glow of youth. And, in fact, from our tiny production of 4 barrels, two must be declassified to Gardens of Babylon. One is superb, and will become 2011 Golgotha. The other is very good, a worthy successor to previous vintages. The truly difficult character of this vintage shines through even this very good wine: it is more delicate than other years, less meaty. But it is beautifully perfumed, and well-balanced and restrained in the mouth. So worth harvesting the fruit, capturing the nature of this harrowing vintage.
82 cases produced