Rodney Strong Symmetry Red Meritage Alexander Valley 2007

Rodney Strong Symmetry Red Meritage Alexander Valley (2007)

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8 reviews

Starting at $39.49 from 26 stores

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Winery:: Rodney Strong Vineyards More from this winery Are we missing a vintage?
Region:: USA » California » Sonoma County » Alexander Valley
Varietal:: Cabernet Sauvignon, Malbec, Merlot, Cabernet Franc, Petit Verdot
Type:: Red Wine
Color:

Aged 26 months in French Oak.

Chemical Analysis:

Alcohol: 15.1%	pH: 3.65
Total Acidity: 6.2 grams per liter

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Winemakers Notes

Our Symmetry meritage is created in our small lot winemaking facility, a “Winery Within the Winery.” Under the direction of consulting winemaker David Ramey, we employ cutting edge techniques such as cluster pre-sorting, berry sorting, and extended maceration. With small tanks and equipment sized for the most discriminating vineyard selection process, this facility is truly state of the art, and represents the klein family commitment towards producing the finest wines possible.

Editorial Reviews

Gregory Dal Piaz

Hand of Snooth Voice of Snooth

23,956

01/28/11

85% Cabernet Sauvignon, 10% Malbec, 3% Merlot, 1% Cabernet Franc, 1% Petite Verdot

Toasty wood, carob, caramel, dried chili and a hint of dill frame the dark black raspberry black berry fruit on the nose. This lacks some integration in the mouth, with lots of sweet fruit seemingly separate from the assertive toasty oak. There’s a deep herbal, grassy vegetal component on the palate, which clashes with the sweetness here. Lots of wood tannin is drying as well but the sweetness of the fruit just barely saves the palate, though the finish is dominated by drying tannins and is short and reminiscent of coffee grinds. This is massively constructed and a wine for optimists. It’s complex and packed with extract but that comes with the price of it being massively tannic. 88pts

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Vineyard Notes

The 2007 vintage started off with a very dry spring, which tended to make for smaller clusters, smaller berries, and less canopy overall. The growing season was about as perfect as any winegrower would want, with warm afternoons and cool evenings, and a complete lack of hot or cold spells. With no weather problems at harvest time, few are surprised with the exceptional quality of this vintage, which will likely go down as one of the best in recent years. Our Symmetry harvest commenced on September 7th, and concluded on October 25th.

Tasting Notes

The 2007 Symmetry greets you with a generous bouquet of blackberries, ripe dark plums, sweet spices, and pie crust. It opens boldly on the palate with layers of blackberry, cassis, dark chocolate and brown spice. This mouth-filling wine is rich, silky in texture, expansive, and quite long on the finish, and manages to be at once harmonious, powerful, and elegant. Intended to be enjoyable on release, Symmetry is destined for years of further evolution in the bottle. Savor it!

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Reviews

CENYC

305

02/27/11

Powerful, Delicious Alexander Valley Blend
Tasted February 2011
Dark purple color, totally opaque except at the edges.
Sweet, jammy bouquet with a touch of smoke.
Smooth, thick, and juicy body at first, but solid structure is provided by moderate oak and a surprising amount of acidity for a red wine. On the second day of tasting, the body had lightened to a medium-weight.
Tasted on its own, the Bordeaux blend offers spicy nutmeg and cloves along with the fruitiness of blackberry preserves and raisins. Tasting the first day the dark fruit flavors dominated. The second day revealed spices and some hints of leather. Tasted with ham, the pungent alcohol flavors come forward to balance the fattiness of the meat in a pleasant way. (ABV is a heady 15.1%).
Aftertaste with food is flinty - interesting for such a substantial cab blend. Aftertaste with a clean palate is reminiscent of canned vegetables with another heavy dose of alcohol.
Knowing the wine is from Alexander Valley, I expected a concentrated, substantial, delicious wine and was not disappointed. This particular blend includes Malbec, Merlot, Cab Franc, and Petit Verdot. The blend seems to lighten the wine (as compared to an Alex Valley pure Cab) and add some more complex notes. My only criticism is the alcohol level is higher than I would consider ideal, making it a little difficult to drink without food.
review remains the property of C. Elliot

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Winecast

Founding Member

186

01/15/11

A blend of 85% Cabernet Sauvignon, 10% Malbec, 3% Merlot, 1% Cabernet Franc and 1% Petit Verdot.

Very deep purple in color with complex aromas of blackberry, blackcurrant, cigar box, sage and black licorice. Bold and rich blackcurrant and blackberry flavors with cassis and black pepper finishing with toasty oak and firm tannins. Decant for 2-3 hours now or put in the cellar for 5-7 years.

Delicious, if a bit over-oaked, at this point but I expect this to integrate as it ages.

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blackberry blackcurrant cigar box sage black licorice cassis black pepper

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Source: Vastosvault.com

03/22/12

Rodney Strong Symmetry 07- Celebrating the esteemed art of blending, Symmetry captures the essence of the Alexander Valley. With 40 years experience growing classic French grape varieties here, we select our best cabernet sauvignon, merlot, and other traditional Bordeaux grapes from the hills that overlook the valley, where well-drained rocky soils combine with warm, sunny days and cool nights to provide ideal growing conditions. Select areas within each vineyard are hand harvested individually, fermented separately, and aged in the finest French oak barrels. After about six months, each lot is tasted and graded, and only the highest graded wines are considered for Symmetry. The blend is then assembled, and the wine is returned to barrels to facilitate flavor integration. The wine is aged an additional 12 to 18 months, depending on the vintage, before bottling. Our Symmetry meritage is created in our small lot winemaking facility, a "Winery Within the Winery." Under the direction of consulting winemaker David Ramey, we employ cutting edge techniques such as cluster pre-sorting, berry sorting, and extended maceration. With small tanks and equipment sized for the most discriminating vineyard selection process, this facility is truly state of the art, and represents the Klein family commitment towards producing the finest wines possible. The 2007 vintage started off with a very dry spring, which tended to make for smaller clusters, smaller berries, and less canopy overall. The growing season was about as perfect as any winegrower would want, with wam afternoons and cool evenings, and a complete lack of hot or cold spells. With no weather problems at harvest time, few are surprised with the exceptional quality of this vintage, which will likely go down read more...

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Source: WineExpress.com

07/05/11

Always one the top Meritage wines produced in California, and Rodney Strong's flagship, Symmetry is a wine whose name sums up what it's all about. All five Bordeaux varietals are combined in a beautifully symmetrical blend. For this 2007 here it's 85% Cabernet Sauvignon, 10% Malbec,
3% Merlot, 1% Cabernet Franc and 1% Petit Verdot aged 26 months in French oak. David Ramey is the Consulting Enologist now for Rodney Strong and he brings his experience to make this wine as true to form as it can be and 2007 was a very rewarding vintage to work with. Wine Enthusiast Magazine made it a Cellar Selection with a 94 point rating saying "A great Bordeaux-style wine that can stand proudly next to Napa bottlings that cost far more. It’s mainly Cabernet Sauvignon, with the other four permitted Meritage varieties, and there seems to be lots of new, sweetly toasted oak. The blackberry, cherry, red currant, mocha and bacon flavors are delicious, but even better is the tannic structure. It’s soft and alluring enough to drink now." AND it's On Sale!

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Source: Marketview Liquor

06/18/11

Mostly Cabernet with the other four permitted Meritage varieties. Lots of new, sweetly toasted oak. The blackberry, cherry, red currant , mocha and bacon flavors are delicious, but even better is the tannin structure. 94 Points Wine Enthusiast.

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Source: CityWineCellar.com

04/12/11

94 Points - Wine Enthusiast A great Bordeaux-style wine that can stand proudly next to Napa bottlings that cost far more. It’s mainly Cabernet Sauvignon, with the other four permitted Meritage variet

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Source: NapaCabs.com

08/29/10

Winemaker Notes - The 2007 Symmetry greets you with a generous bouquet of blackberries, ripe dark plums, sweet spices, and a hint of chocolate. It opens boldly on the palate with layers of blackberry, cassis, smoky dark chocolate and brown spice. This mouth-filling wine is rich, silky in texture, expansive, and quite long on the finish, and manages to be at once harmonious, powerful, and elegant. Intended to be enjoyable on release, Symmetry is destined for years of further evolution in the bottle. Savor it!

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