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Date Printed: 6/20/2013
Bonny Doon Le Cigare Volant 2005
Bonny Doon Le Cigare Volant 2005
 (search item no. 100344)
screw cap wine
green wine

The Wine Advocate rating: 89 points
PRICE ON 6/20/2013: $29.99

ratings pedigree (past vintages):
2008 Wine Spectator rating: 89 points
2007 The Wine Advocate rating: 89 points
2006 International Wine Cellar rating: 91 points
2003 Wine Enthusiast rating: 90 points
2001 Wine Enthusiast rating: 91 points
2000 International Wine Cellar rating: 90 points
1999 International Wine Cellar rating: 89 points
1998 International Wine Cellar rating: 88 points
1998 Wine Spectator rating: 86 points

Winemaker's Notes:

 Blend: 50% grenache, 24% mourvedre, 22% syrah, 3% carignane, 1% cinsault

An earthier style of Cigare than previous editions, the 2005 shows a deep ruby robe with bright purple highlights. Aromas of spiced meat, kirsch, mushrooms, a soupçon of truffle and dark chocolate make for a richly perfumed red wine. Flavors of earthy red fruit, cocoa beans and sweet spice, balanced with moderate acidity, slightly crunchy tannins and a generous, even voluptuous texture with a long, savory finish. This wine has the structure to age well and shows more French oak than is normal for us. Quite delicious, yet clearly serious and stylistically, very Old World. Ages until kids are out of the house. As of this date (Feb. 5, 2009), the wine has definitely begun to close up shop - not a cause for despair, but an indication of its great ageing potential.
My Notes:

Additional wines from Bonny Doon Vineyard:

About Bonny Doon Vineyard:

 Bonny Doon Vineyard is situated in the Santa Cruz Mountains in the tiny hamlet of Bonny Doon. The winery was founded in 1983 by the Grahm family. Randall Grahm, Winemaker and President-for-Life of Bonny Doon Vineyard, was born in Los Angeles in 1953 and attended Uncle Charlie's Summer Camp, excuse me, the prestigious University of California at Santa Cruz, where he was a permanent Liberal Arts major. A complete and insufferable wine fanatic, he returned to the University of California at Davis to complete a degree in viticulture in 1979. Grahm is known as the "Rhone Ranger" for his pioneering work in the popularization of Rhone and Provencal varieties in California. Bonny Doon produces an array of such favorites as: Vin Gris de Cigare (thinking person's pink wine), Le Sophiste (Roussanne/Marsanne melange), Clos de Gilroy (young, fruity Grenache), Le Cigare Volant (Cryptoneuf-du-Pape), Garnacha (the strong Pink Wine), and a dramatically intense Muscat "Vin de Glaciere" (wine of the icebox).