Long Shadows Chester Kidder Meritage 2019

A big, black-fruited, concentrated red based on 62% Cabernet Sauvignon, 35% Syrah, and a splash of Petit Verdot, the 2019 Chester Kidder Red Wine sports a dense purple hue as well as a rock star nose of currants, spicy oak, flowers, and smoked tobacco. Rich, full-bodied, and concentrated, with beautiful tannins, it needs 3-5 years of bottle age to develop more complexity but will have two decades of overall longevity. It's a beautiful bottle of wine.

Named after the late Allen Shoup's mother and grandmother, the 2019 Chester Kidder is a blend of 62% Cabernet Sauvignon, 35% Syrah and 3% Petit Verdot. It has a complex, firm and bold nose that focused on dark fruit aromas of blackberry skin and spiced plum. Medium to full-bodied, the palate offers a bold and firm-gripping tannic structure that will benefit from an additional year of bottle aging after its release in the fall of 2023. The wine continues to reveal layers of complexity over the firm and food-friendly finish. Decanting is recommended. Just under 26,000 bottles were filled after the wine rested for 30 months in 85% new French oak barrels.

Notes of ground spices, walnut, cocoa powder and dark fruit. Medium- to full-bodied, meaty and chewy with chalky tannins and a ripe dark berry core. Structured and long. Drink or hold.

The 2019 Chester-Kidder is exotic and earthy in style, with ashen stones, graphite, black currants and hints of rosemary forming its bouquet. This is silky and sleek, with racy acidity propelling its mineral-tinged red and black fruits. It leaves a coating of trippy tannins to linger, pinching at the cheeks with youthful concentration, as sweet herbal tones slowly fade. The 2019 seems to close up in the glass with time, demanding further cellaring to show its best. Gilles Nicault allows the Chester-Kidder to go through an extended maceration of 42 days and then refines it for 30 months in 85% new French oak. It's a blend of 62% Cabernet Sauvignon, 35% Syrah and 3% Petit Verdot.