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For the past several years, Kim has referred to Sean Thackrey’s Pleiades as “my wine.” She has come to love it dearly over its many incarnations, as our experience with it goes back to at least number VIII. We always look forward to trying the new release, and Kim is always very good about sharing her wine with me, as I usually find a lot to like about these myself.

Thackrey eschews vintage dating of Pleiades, as he apparently has no qualms about including components from previous years, if it’ll make a better, more complete wine. And lest one assume that this is simply a kitchen-sink-catch-all of leftovers, the quirky winemaker assured us just last May that these are always very well thought out.

We received a shipment of this latest version of Pleiades a few weeks back, and after giving them ample time to rest after their journey, pulled the cork on one to see what’s in the bottle. Here’s what we found.

Sean Thackrey Pleiades XIX California Red Table Wine, 14.7% alc., $24: You can tell just from looking at the clean medium dark color that this is a lighter version of Pleiades than any of the releases that I can recall, and one taste confirms that. Only medium-full bodied at most, but that’s OK, because there’re some good things happening here. A judicious kiss of oak graces a pretty melange of red fruit flavors and aromas, with subtle leathery nuances lurking in the background. Structured for at least a few years in the cellar, but drinking quite well right now, despite Kim’s complaint that the “mint is just explosive in the mouth;” she’d like to see how this fares with some cellar time to tone that element down and we can do that with the bottles we have left. At this point, it’s not one of the best Pleiades that we’ve had, but neither is it a bad wine in any way; we’ll try it again in a couple of years and report back. A blend of Sangiovese, Viognier, Mourvedre, Syrah and Petite Sirah, among others. Find this wine

Reporting from Day-twah,

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Related posts:

1. An Afternoon With Sean Thackrey

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