Has anyone dared open a Cayuse Wallah Wallah Special mag?

The earlier thread about favorite Cayuse got me thinking. I was wondering if anyone has first or second-hand knowledge of how the Wallah Wallah Specials are. I’ve got the 2103 #5 and the 2014 #6, but I don’t recall what the inaugural vintage was. I’m pretty sure anyone allocated any was only ever allocated the one magnum per vintage. I’m wondering if anyone has dared open one yet, and how it showed. [cheers.gif]

Brandon,

The Wallah Wallah wines are interesting in that Wallah Wallah #4 was the first commercially available one. The first was a 2005 Neutral Barrel Cailloux. Christophe had noticed something special about this particular barrel and decided to bottle it only in magnum. Here are my notes on three of the times I was able to drink it:

12/3/2008 – Most people’s WOTN and tied for WOTN for me with the 01 BF. So funky that I think it must have been the dedicated drink for the ABA. Herby, stinky, silky, creamy. Also co-fermented with a bit more viognier that gave it a melon-y, pineappleness that was damn intruiging. Hope this gets released at some point. 97pts.

11/10/2009 – This is when the party really got started. Christophe was generous enough last year to send us a mag of this mythical beauty but decided we needed three mags this year. Thank you! As much as I liked this wine last year, it is in another league this year. The first whiff buckled my knees like a Dwight Gooden curveball circa 1986. It possessed every smell I love. Herbs, seaweed, dried pineapple, roasted berries, rare meat, sausage, blood, soy, violets. I literally sat there and smelled it for an hour. At this point, people were threatening to kick my ass if I didn’t finally take a drink. I acquiesced and was blown away. Layers of flavors. Pineapple, smoke, dark fruit/berries, black pepper. Makes you think it’s massive but conveys no excess baggage. Seamless and silky tannins along with the layered flavor and aromatics make the finish last for what seems to be hours. Otherworldly. 100pts.

5/25/2010 – My third experience with this wine. You’ve got to be kidding me. The 2nd time I had this wine I bestowed upon it my first ever 100 points. Maybe I need to adopt Parker’s new scoring system and give it 102 points this time as it was that good. Funkdified on the nose with herbs, sour fruit, bacon wrapped pork (double pig, baby!), and that dried pineapple thing that is so intriguing. Layers and layers of syrah goodness on the palate. This is essentially, for me, syrah as its best.

The WW#1 is simply the greatest wine I have ever drank.

WW#2 was a grenache and again a single barrel bottled only in magnum and not released. It was 2009 Grenache Barrel #4 and I have had it once. I didn’t write a formal note but remember it being one of the most heightened New World grenache experiences I have had. The smile on Christophe’s face when he talked about this wine was rather large.

WW#3 is a cabernet from 2012 if I remember correctly. I don’t know much of anything about this wine other than it was bottled in magnum and not released. I send an email and work on getting more info.

WW #4, #5, and #6 are all multi-vineyard bottlings that I suspect came about when Charles Smith’s contracts ran out (Christophe sold grapes to CS for almost ten years). With the extra grapes, I think Christophe decided to craft a collectible syrah bottled in magnum. I’ve had both the #4 and #5 and they are great wines. You don’t get the singularity that many of the individual vineyard syrahs possess but these are terrific wines made in the house style.

Hope that helps!

That is extremely helpful, and very interesting history to boot, Jared. Thank you very much for posting. BTW, kudos on the, “…like a Dwight Gooden curveball circa 1986.” Awesome line.

Seeing as how it’s a multi-vineyard blend, I am almost intrigued to give the #4 a go sometime soon and hold the single vineyard Cayuse for later.

I’ll back up Jareds statement of WW #1, I was with him on his first two notes and its an elite wine in every sense of the word. Looking back, I’m glad it was never commercially realeased as it gives sort of mythical, unicorn like quality. Like Bigfoot!

Yeah, Jared sums up the WW #1 tasting experience pretty accurately. I was with him for a couple of those tastings, and like Jared it is the stand-out benchmark for the very few 100 pt scores I’ve given.

I’ve said I want to be embalmed in 2001 Rieussec…but I hope my last meal is served with 2005 WW#1.

Bump. Anyone open a 2014 recently?

OMG terrible timing for this thread. With allocations in two weeks I was debating with my wife how many magnums to get. She’s thinking zero would be good, one would be tolerable. I’m thinking numbers to match a starting hockey line-up or maybe baseball team numbers would be nice. She’s not going to be influenced by this thread and I’m going to be tormented by it. Still love hearing the reviews. Regards.

Had the #5 (2103) in the past couple months

Was good
Clearly Cayuse (was actually served to me double blind)

But definitely not a step up for me vs other bottlings

Cool bottling/packaging Though

Thanks. Would you say, drink or hold?

Hold for sure

I would say 10 years of cellar time minimum.

I have a mag of Wallah wallah #1 & #2 left from the auction at hospice du Rhône from many years ago. Sounds like I should open that when Jared is around. I opened 2 of the 2014 version a couple months ago for a woozy bottle zoom call for 15 people. Shipped the samples all over the country and they were great. Cayuse doesn’t sell mags Of anything else, I am happy they do a mag only bottling.

Travis you should open them up when I am around :slight_smile:

We stupidly opened the #6 (2014) when I thought I was opening one of my two bottles of the #4.

READING GLASSES!!

Not close to ready. Yes, it’s Cayuse but I’m guessing it’s a decade from special.