Duce

Bonny Doon “Ca’ del Solo” 2005 Sangiovese (San Benito County) – There are dollops of nero d’avola, cinsault, and colorino here. What do they add? I’m not sure. An intense nose of mixed jellies – plum, blueberry, blackberry – fades to simpler multi-hued cherries by the finish, there’s a tannic bite that grates with underripeness as the wine lingers, and a fairly significant amount of acidity adds to what eventually becomes a general and growing sensation of off-putting weediness. Eh. (9/08)

Doon messiah

Bonny Doon “Ca’ del Solo” 2005 Sangiovese (San Benito County) – Hard, then tart, then absent, with a big burst of strawberries scraped from the tongue with a rasp of tannin, giving way to a puckery sourness, and eventually skipping off to parts unknown. The loony (and unfortunately given the source, unfunny) mysticism on the label won’t save the wine from its flaws. (2/08)