Wine Advisor
Verite, La Muse 2008
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Description
Profound and sophisticated, La Muse delivers the incredible depth and texture with a Merlot-based blend from the top micro-crus of eastern Sonoma County. Like a graceful swan, it embodies elegance, softness and strength.
Tasting notes
Reviewed by: Robert M. Parker, Jr.
There are 1,676 cases of the 2008 La Muse, a blend of 90% Merlot, 7% Cabernet Franc, and 3% Malbec. This full-bodied offering displays lots of black fruits, espresso roast, chocolate, graphite, and pen ink along with huge intensity, powerful, substantial tannins, and a long finish. It does not yet reveal the velvety character for which La Muse is known, but I suspect it will when tasted after bottling. (Not yet released) The 2007s appear to be the greatest wines Verite has yet produced under the leadership of Jess Jackson and his winemaking guru, Bordelais Pierre Seillan. These extraordinary wines, built for the long term (much like top Bordeaux), are fashioned from some of the finest fruit sources Jess Jackson owns in Sonoma County. I have purchased and loved these cuvees from the beginning, and have followed their aging process (which is glacially slow). Production of these wines is small, but not ridiculously so. There are just over 1,460 cases of La Muse, nearly 2,000 cases of La Joie, and just under 1,900 cases of Le Desir. The 2008s are also strong efforts. Given the fact that Verite’s wines often perform better out of bottle than they do from barrel, this may be another powerful, long-lived vintage. Available through Vin Lux Fine Wines, tel. (866) 462-4641; Fax (866) 853-1707
Reviewed by: Robert M. Parker, Jr.
A blend of 90% Merlot, 7% Cabernet Franc and 3% Malbec (52% Chalk Hill, 45% Alexander Mountain Estate and 3% Bennett Valley fruit), the 2008 may have even greater intensity and richness than the 2007. Still young and unformed, it exhibits phenomenal richness and equilibrium as well as a finish that lasts nearly a minute. Its dense plum/purple color is accompanied by notions of black fruits, forest floor, truffles and spring flowers. It should age for 25-30+ years.
Reviewed by: Robert M. Parker, Jr.
The 2008 La Muse (1,500 cases) exhibits a dense purple color along with a big, sweet nose of chocolate fudge, black cherries, licorice, underbrush, camphor and espresso. Full-bodied, powerful and extraordinarily concentrated, but also tannic, it is a blend of 90% Merlot, 7% Cabernet Franc and 3% Malbec all of which is accessed from Jess Jackson’s Alexander Mountain Estate vineyard. Like its siblings, it is aged in 100% French oak, and has the highest level of alcohol (14.5%). Jess Jackson and his Bordelais winemaker, Pierre Seillan, have followed their 2007s (the finest wines they have ever made) with strong efforts in 2008. To understand these wines, readers must realize that they are not meant for near-term drinking, but rather for extended cellaring. Seillan truly wants to produce a wine with the ripeness of California fruit backed up by the structure and ageability of a top Bordeaux. All of these cuvees come from Sonoma County estate vineyards owned by Jess Jackson. The La Muse (dominated by Merlot) offering represents Verite’s right bank Pomerol-styled wine, La Joie is their Medoc-styled effort dominated by Cabernet Sauvignon and Le Desir is more of a St.-Emilion, possibly Graves-styled wine dominated by Cabernet Franc blended with Merlot. These wines all need 4-5 years of bottle age, and are capable of lasting three decades or more. If you did not catch the 2007s that were released in 2010, my scores are as follows: 2007 Le Desir (98), 2007 La Joie (100) and 2007 La Muse (99). Tel. (866) 462-4641; Fax (866) 853-1707
Reviewed by: Stephen Tanzer
(15% alcohol): Bright, saturated ruby-red. Alluring scents of black raspberry, bitter cherry, mocha, cocoa powder and smoky minerality. At once fine-grained and vibrant in the mouth, with an element of dried herbs complicating the very bright dark raspberry, bitter chocolate and licorice flavors. Offers bulletproof density but no undue weight, thanks to enlivening minerality and sound acidity. This wine is just beginning to unfold today and still needs to be held. Tannins are firm and dusty but not dry.
Reviewed by: Stephen Tanzer
(90% merlot, 7% cabernet franc and 3% malbec): Bright red-ruby. Inviting nose offers cherry, raspberry and chocolate truffle. Explosive on the front half, with sexy spices lifting and intensifying the redcurrant fruit. Today the wine's tannins give the finish a slightly dry quality but the intensity and subtle persistence of this wine suggest that it simply needs time. Pierre Seillan typically does a pre-fermentation cold soak lasting four or five days, then about eight days of fermentation and no post-fermentation maceration. The malolactic fermentation takes place in barrels of various toast levels and from numerous French forests.
Reviewed by: Stephen Tanzer
(based on 89% merlot) Good full ruby. Reticent but pure aromas of dark berries, minerals, licorice, spicecake and lead pencil. Supple and spicy but not overly sweet, with excellent intensity and a graceful quality to the vibrant dark berry and violet flavors. Finishes firmly tannic, floral and long, with noteworthy verve. This combines alcohol of 15% with a moderate pH of 3.62.
About the Producer
Verite is a local boutique winery located in Sonoma County, California, USA. Verite Winery is a winery owned by Jackson Family Wines. The winery name "Verite" means "truth" in French, which means that the wines produced by the winery can faithfully show the local terroir characteristics. The winemaker of the winery is Pierre Seillan, a famous winemaker with 22 years of winemaking experience in Bordeaux, France. (Haut-Medoc) winemaker and technical guide of 7 Bordeaux wineries in the production area. In the 1990s, Celine, who was a winemaker at a winery in Bordeaux at the time, met Jess Jackson, president of the Jackson family wine business, and the two hit it off. Soon Celine accepted Jess' invitation to come Sonoma County makes great wines. With the joint efforts of the two, Winery Truth released its first vintage in 1998. Over the years, the winery has been adhering to the winemaking philosophy of interpreting the truth of the soil and showing the unique terroir. The winery’s vineyards are located in the Alexander Valley, Bennett Valley, Knights Valley and Chalk Hill appellations. These appellations vary in terroir and hill topography, elevation and slope orientation, resulting in a diverse range of micro-vineyards under the estate’s entire vineyard. There are more than 40 different types of soil in the vineyard, among them, rocky and red volcanic soils provide ideal conditions for the growth of Cabernet Sauvignon (Cabernet Sauvignon) and Merlot (Merlot). In addition, the vineyard is also planted Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot. During the grape growing process, the winery precisely controls the differences between different vineyards, the characteristics of the grape plants and even the subtle differences between each spore or tendril, so that the wine produced can reflect the characteristics of the local terroir. Currently, the wines released by the winery are Verite La Muse, Verite La Joie and Verite Le Desir. Among them, the creation of the Muse of Truth is inspired by the Pomerol wines and made from the quality Merlot of Sonoma County, which is balanced and elegant; the Joy of Truth has the depth and elegance of a good Cabernet Sauvignon. Strength, reminiscent of Pauillac-style wines from Bordeaux; Desire of Truth red wines with the suppleness of Saint-Emilion Cabernet Franc. The three series of blends, Le Desir, La Joie and La Muse, have all been awarded full marks by the Robert Parker Points.
