Tasting Note                         

91  2004 Foley Santa Rita Hills P.N. Rancho Santa Rosa 3/25/06 ($27)

14.3% alc
Color: Purple black cherry. (3.0) Bouquet: Sweet black cherry cola fruit with lively acidity and some smoky cedar. Can smell a touch of alcohol. (3.0) Body: Light heavyweight with fierce acidity propelling rich fruit. More tannin and oak, more life period, than the last two vintages. (3.5) Flavor: Bright, rich black cherry fruit with cola and smoke nuances, very tasty. Also a combination of briar, smoky oak and wild berry that is reminiscent of a classy, single vineyard Zin. (3.0) Finish: Parallels flavor, but a little heat and some tannin present. Still long and tasty. (3.0)
Overall: Excellent structure and fruit, giving it more life and distinction than the last two vintages. It only needs time to resolve a little heat and tannin (2-5 years?), but balanced and tasty enough to enjoy now. Of the last three vintages, the 2002 is the most Burgundian and this is the most California. Surprisingly, the 2004 is also the most interesting of the three at this point, with the 2003 being the least interesting and somewhere in between in style. I don’t have enough experience with this wine to say whether these differences reflect the respective vintages or are just due to different stages of development, but I suspect the former. All three are of high quality and definitely worth the price of admission. (15.5)