Spelletich Cellars

There’s an old photo, circa 1871, of Bodog Spelletich – freedom fighter, civil rights lawyer, and member of the Hungarian parliament. Old man Spelletich, the great, great grandfather of winemaker Barbara Spelletich, is further described by his great, great granddaughter as a “Hungarian hunk.” The wine that Spelletich’s relative made 132 years after that picture was snapped, can be described in the same way.

It’s deep-flavored, complex, earthy, big and chewy, and it too will age for a long time. Loaded with black cherry aromas and baking spices, with some decanting, the wine becomes more tamed and the balance becomes evident. The wine will age for 10 years. The Bodog red named for this Hungarian figure, is an unusual blend – Cabernet Sauvignon, Zinfandel, Merlot and Syrah – from purchased Napa Valley fruit.

The Cab comes from the Indian Springs Vineyard (32%) in St. Helena, Ghisletta (7%) in the Carneros, Neisar (3%) in Oak Knoll, and Rustridge (2%) in Chiles Valley. The Zin is from D’Anneo Vineyard (25%) in Calistoga and Muhlnar (9%) in Chiles Valley. The Merlot (13%) is sourced from exclusively from Ghisletta (pronounced GIZZ-let-a), while the Syrah (9%) is all from Muhlnar.

The wine was aged for 26 months in French, American and, of course, Hungarian oak; with half of the whole being new. The listed alcohol is 14.1 percent and there were 840 cases produced. I suggest holding onto it for a couple of years and then drinking it over the next 15.

Reviewed February 14, 2007 by Alan Goldfarb.