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Most Experience Best Family Act Warre���s NV 20 Year Old Tawny, Porto, Portugal ($53) LangeTwins Wine Estates 2010 Caricature Red, California ($17) Warre���s has a few impressive things to boast about. First of all, it was founded in 1670 (yep, it���s 342 years old). Second of all, it is the oldest British port shipper in Portugal. And lastly, it is one of the few port houses that still uphold the art of foot-treading grapes in stone lagares (though they did switch to robotic treading machines in 1996 due to lack of manpower). There is something that should be traditional and historic when you���re drinking port, should there not? Warre���s 20 Year Old Tawny truly offers so much that many others cannot. Virbant tawny color; nose of spice, orange peel, rancio and toasted oak; creamy, toasty and showing rancio and lovely burnt orange; silky, long and complex. Fifth-generation winegrowers Randall and Brad Lange come from a long lineage of Lodi farmers (the family was originally growing watermelons, but got into the grape business early on), but it wasn���t until 2006 that these two really got into the game, rolling up their sleeves to found the family-operated winery and working to create a portfolio of special and sustainable wines. A blend of 84% Cab and 16% Zin, you can practically taste the brotherly bond and family teamwork in every bottle. This animated red draws on sweet, meaty cherries, succulent plums, black olives and spiced black fruit. With two sides to its personality���deep and brooding on one side and generous and outgoing on the other���it is a study of vibrant ���avor and a tableau of velvet texture. VINEYARD BRANDS Most Traditional Most Historic (U.S. Edition) Dr. Loosen 2010 Riesling Kabinett ���Blue Slate,��� Mosel, Germany ($20) Mettler Family Vineyards 2009 Epicenter Old Vine Zinfandel, Lodi ($20) When you���re one of the biggest names in the German wine industry, following a tradition of excellence only leads to future excellence. At Dr. Loosen, limited yields and a ���handsoff��� production process result in stunningly intense, clear fruit expression Riesling that offer a precise re���ection of the blue slate Mosel terroir. This estate-grown Kabinett is light and delicate, with grapes picked early in harvest to keep residual sugars low and ���avors keen. Pure and crisp with sweet lime, white peach and tangy acid; nervy with minerals and bright ���avors; elegant and long. It���s often dif���cult to ���nd businesses in the United States that are over 100 years old, but Lodi���s Mettler Family Vineyards makes a mere century look like chump change. With roots in the wine industry dating back to the 1770s and the winery���s ���rst Lodi fruit planted in the late 19th century, the Mettler family has been an integral part of California���s winegrowing history. Today, the Mettlers keep the tradition alive with sixth-generation grape growers now producing their own wines, including Epicenter Old Vine Zin, sourced from 50 year-old vineyards known to produce spectacular Lodi fruit. Deliciously rich-toned; the intensity heightens to a crescendo of blackberry and summer plums and entertains with an espresso path that leads to its glamorously deluxe ���nish. LOOSEN BROS. USA CREATIVE WINES INTERNATIONAL 136 / the tasting panel / december 2012