Review: 2023 Eight Years in the Desert California Red Wine

With its oversized Burgundy bottle, textured label, and mysterious name there’s a bit of mystery around what this Orin Swift California-designated blend really is. Turns out it’s a mix of Zinfandel, Petite Sirah, and Syrah, aged 7 months in French Oak, 35% of which is new.

At 15.6% abv, it’s a powerhouse of a wine, gooey and unctuous with overwhelming notes of currants, macerated cherries, and raisins developing against a backdrop of dark chocolate and licorice — almost dessert-like. Quite jammy with overripe raspberry notes as it builds, elements of tea leaf take a central role, though they’re counterbalanced by ample sweetness, with a reprise of raisins and dried cherries. Plenty of chocolate clings to the finish, with a vanilla character and more licorice emerging late in the game.

This is one of those wines that drips its way to its conclusion, with a sweet finish so enduring you can still feel it inside your cheeks five minutes later. There’s lots of power and exuberance here, but it’s awfully far over the edge for a table wine.

Aka 8 Years in the Desert.

B+ / $53

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