Nose: I didn’t expect the first draw to take me to childhood. We had a California pepper tree on the back of my parents’ orchard. Beautiful, but a giant pain in the ass given my job to mow and trim. Its fern-like branches would hang down, heavy with the bright pink berries. A sweet spicy aroma would drift into the house when the warm santa ana winds would blow. The aroma is both brightly cloying and yet earthy. Juicy currants and sun ripened blackberries. Wet forest moss.
Palate: Incredibly elegant. Bright pops of cassis on the tongue and then a slow faaaaade … nope still going. Each time I open my mouth to breathe the flavors surge once again. Warm with a touch of spicy, the pepperiness coming through on a bigger draw. Reminiscent of a stick tea I fell in love with many years ago that I have not been able to source or name to my great chagrin.
Rating: 7 / 10 – I love that it is so perfectly clear that at first Julie didn’t believe there was anything in the glass. I have a Nusbaumer cassis cordial I bought Julie a few weeks ago and poured a side-by-side. While they share DNA, these could not be more different approaches to the same fruit. Capreolus is an elegant perfume. Nusbaumer a dessert lolly, which my wife mixes with champagne to a fabulous result. I would easily reach for the EDV and yes, I kinda wish I could try it at 48% to see what happens, but only out of curiosity.
