An Abstract comparison

My obsession with Orin Swift wines began when I first tasted the Abstract wine many years ago.  I bought as many bottles that my happy place had available and then that beautiful wine seemed to have disappeared from the face of the earth. A few years later, a friend came upon a bottle in Michigan and brought it back to me. Then two years ago, another friend surprised me with two bottles as a birthday gift. 

About two years ago, the new vintage of Abstract came out. I was very excited because it had seemed like forever since I had seen Abstract on the shelves. It was Halloween at my happy place when my friend surprised me with a bottle to share. I was disappointed. It was nothing like my original love but then again nothing ever is, is it?

This colorfully-labeled vintage was definitely not the same as my blacked-out label vintage. I remember decanting it and it helped but it still wasn't the same. Perhaps the colorful label didn't help any because I admired the texturized blacked-out label just as much as its contents. Still, I bought a bottle and put it away to see if aging would help it any. I also wanted to do a side by side tasting at some point.
 

Last winter, I took both bottles to my parents' house to share with my dad, the Evil Red Genius and my favorite guy. I was the only one who had ever tasted either of these wines and wanted "my people" to be able to compare the wines side by side. They all know how much I adore Orin Swift but it would be interesting to see if they agreed with me or thought I was crazy. Then again, if they thought I was crazy, then I wouldn't have to share, would I? (insert devious laugh here)

 

First, we would taste the 2010 blacked-out love of my life vintage:

 

Yes, after all these years, I was still madly in love!!!

Oh Abstract... smooth with a little bite.  Smells like muddy tennis shoes with a very berry taste.
It instantly made me and the Evil Red Genius think of the Jason Aldean song, "Dirt Road Anthem".
(/I'm turning off the real life, driving, that's right/I'm hittin' easy street on mud tires.)

Next, we would taste this same wine but after it had decanted two hours to see if it had changed.

It had definitely changed!
 In fact, although I didn't think it was possible, it got even better!

It smelled like a rain forest, wet moss and was absolutely divine. The wine was bolder others claimed it tasted like a completely different wine now!
 In fact, two quote-worthy comments were, "Oh my God, this is good!" to "Cheers to you, Val!"
It's a great feeling when I am in love with a wine and others reciprocate!

Next, we would try the 2012 colorfully-labeled Abstract:
 

 

Right out of the bottle, this vintage smelled of flowers, azaleas actually, and was not dirty or muddy. In fact, it smelled good but completely different from the other vintage.

It had a definite bite on the finish and almost a medicinal flavor.

 

The decanted version was definitely better in that it smoothed out the wine and took away the bite.(Good job, decanter. That's what you're supposed to do) 

An aroma of flowers dipped in paint combined with sweet baking spices thankfully replaced the previous medicinal flavor.

Isn't it amazing how decanting a wine for two hours can make a world of difference?

 

So, what's the verdict of the Abstract comparison?

 

 Everyone agreed that the blacked-out label had more quality than the colorfully-labeled vintage.

While no one but me would deny the colorfully-labeled Abstract, it was quite obvious that the blacked-out label vintage was by far superior!

I'll turn them all in to Orin Swift fans if it kills me! (There goes that devious snicker again).

 

 

 

Fresh grapes and wine are perhaps the most luscious foods we mortals encounter during our sojourn here.

~ Jeff Cox, From Vines to Wines