Cabernet Sauvignon

Wente Vineyards was founded in 1883.  This Cab is from an estate owned vineyard in the southern part of Livermore Valley.  A somewhat unique blend of 76% Cabernet Sauvignon, 11% Petit Verdot, 9% Petite Sirah, and 4% Barbara.  Purple in color with ruby swirls, mostly opaque and bright.  The nose is interesting with cassis, black cherries, pomegranate, and some light chocolate and spice.  Medium bodied.  Medium tannins.  Nice texture.  Juicy acidity.  On the palate, cassis and blueberries with some underlying spice.  Long finish with a slight warmth to it.  This is drinking well now and shoul

Trilogy is one of the more famous blends made in Napa and this represents the 35th vintage!  This vintage is a blend of 75% Cabernet Sauvignon, 10% Petit Verdot, 8% Cabernet Franc, and 7% Malbec.  Deep garnet in color, mostly opaque and bright.  The nose has black cherries, cassis, char, and slight milk chocolate and spices.  Medium to full bodied.  Medium plus tannins.  Tingly acidity.  On the palate, raspberries, cassis and some underlying char.  Long finish with some chocolate notes.  This is still young but should be good drinking over the next fifteen to twenty years.  Nice on its own,

This is the kind of wine that makes sense to buy more than a few bottles of if you see it on sale. It might be a stretch, it might be an everyday drinker depending on your budget, but either way it is priced very fairly for the quality. Purple in color, opaque and bright. The nose has cassis, char, spice and slight coffee. Full bodied. Medium tannins. On the palate, this is a cooler climate styled Cab but no issues with ripeness. Plenty of depth, this is still young and should gain in complexity with some age. Cassis, some black cherries, char and spice in a delicious Cabernet.

Another great wine from winemaker Thomas Rivers Brown.  Inky purple in color, ruby at the rim, opaque and bright.  The nose has cassis, cedar, leather, char and black olives.  Full bodied.  Light tannins.  On the palate, there is cassis, spice, cedar and some warmth.  Long finish.  This is about at peak but should drink well for another ten to twelve more years.  It is great on its own and will work well with roast beef.  

This is from Washington state.  Purple in color, ruby at the rim, mostly opaque and bright.  The nose has black cherries, slight spice and dark chocolate with a bit of char.  Medium bodied.  On the palate, lots of black cherry fruit with some underlying char.  Light tannins.  Nice finish.  This should be drunk in the next few years.  It will work nicely with roasted chicken.  

This is an easy drinking Napa Cabernet.  Purple in color with some garnet swirls, opaque and bright.  The nose is nice with cassis, black cherries, roasted herbs and a hint of cedar.  Full bodied.  Light tannins.  On the palate, the black cherries move to the forefront.  Nice texture.  Some depth.  Clean.  Moderate acidity.  Solid finish.  This is drinking well right now and will work on its own or with food.  It went well with potato filled pierogis.  Drink over the next five to eight years.  

Nice to revisit this with some age.  It is doing fine.  Purple in color, opaque and bright.  The nose has cassis, dust and spice.  Full bodied.  Light tannins.  On the palate, this is still a bit youthful.  Plenty of cassis and oak showing.  Deep.  It probably needs another five years until fully mature.  Still drinks great today with some air.  Drink over the next ten to twelve years.  It drinks great on its own and will work well with a grilled steak.  

Purple in color, opaque but flat.  The nose is dusty with cassis.  With air some dark cherries come out.  A slight minty note on the end.  Medium bodied.  On the palate, black cherries, some cassis with a velvety lush texture.  The nose full mature and a probably a bit past prime.  Good balance.  Still drinking well.  Drink up.  This will work better with food.  Roast chicken is a nice choice.  

This is a blend of 81% Cabernet Sauvignon, 12% Cabernet Franc, and 7% Petit Verdot from the Eisele vineyard in Calistoga.  Purple in color, opaque and bright.  The nose has cassis, black cherries, cigar box, cloves and dust.  Firm tannins.  Good acidity.  On the palate, this has cassis, cedar with an underlying char.  Long finish.  This is young and will still get better but it is delicious today.  Maybe about five to eight more years until peak.  It will drink well for the next fifteen to twenty years.  Great on its own or with food, lamb chops would be a nice choice.  

Shafer Hillside Select is quite simply a First Growth of Napa Cabernets.  Every vintage is always one of the top releases from Napa.  Inky purple in color, opaque and bright.  The nose is great with cassis, smoke, cedar, graphite and dust.  Full bodied.  Medium tannins.  On the palate, there is cassis with layers of graphite, cedar and smoke.  Nice complexity. This is just about fully mature at this point. Long finish.  This is delicious on its own and will work well with roasted meats and veggies.  Drink over the next ten to twelve years.