Two weeks ago I enjoyed a bottle of the new B.R. Cohn wine that is kosher, from the 2011 vintage. The wine is still from the same region and vineyard as the last vintage, which was from 2008. But in my opinion, nowhere as good, though to be fair, 2011 was a very hard year to make good wine, as the climate was never warm and there were rains as well.

I spoke before about the BR Cohn brand and how they made the wine. The previous vintage was from 2008 and that was a killer wine. The wine was truly elegant and rich at the same time. On top of that, the price was truly reasonable, at 28 or so dollars. However, for this vintage they have essentially doubled the price and are now charging some 50+ dollars for the wine, unless you are part of their wine club, which is not kosher. In the end, this vintage in my opinion is not worth the 50 dollars, but the 2008 vintage may well have been worth that. I hear that they have made another vintage (from 2012) and maybe will do it again in 2013. The 2012 vintage will be far better, and this one is not bad, given the climate and the grapes they were given.

All in all, not a bad wine, but one that I only bought a single bottle of, as I wanted to see how the 2011 climate affected the wine before “investing” in more.

The wine note follows below:

2011 B.R. Cohn Cabernet Sauvignon, Trestle Glen Estate Vineyard: Score B++ to A-
This wine has no significant flaws,  but the cooler year, seems like it forced the winemakers to keep the grapes on the vine longer, causing more date and sweet fruit notes. I have no proof to that, just what I am tasting in the wine. Add to that the 50 dollar price tag, and this wine, IMHO, does not come close to its older and original kosher brother – the 2008 Trestle Glen. The wine was aged in tight grain French barrels.

The nose shifts often, like Muhammad Ali fighting Frasier, ducking and weaving. The nose starts off closed, then opens to black cherry notes, blackcurrant, plum, and spice. Over time the blueberry notes are followed by insane graphite, loamy dirt, cloves, and black pepper. The mouth is not as impressive as the nose, and is its clear Achilles heel, medium in weight showing date and sweet notes, along with sweet oak, roasted sweet herb, and mouth coating tannin. The finish is long, with chocolate, vanilla, smoky notes, along with crushed green olive, salty notes, and spice. The lack of acid is really holding back this wine from balancing its sweeter side.