Cabernet Sauvignon

Chappellet excels at most anything they do. So this Hideaway Vineyard Cabernet, a 100% Cabernet, should be no surprise that it’s a deftly made wine. From the outset this is a rich, structured wine. It begins with moderate to heavy tannins, which support black cherry, blackberry, light campfire smoke, rhubarb, black tea leaf, soft cedar, wild flower and herbs, and light clove. Aged in mainly new French oak to subdue the tannins, this high elevation Cabernet fruit from Pritchard Hill is classic Napa Cabernet – ripe but restrained.

Another gorgeous wine from Becklyn Cellars.  Inky purple, opaque and bright.  The nose is big with cassis, slight coffee bean, cigar, and slight graphite.  Full bodied.  Firm tannins.  Great, plush texture.  On the palate, this is concentrated, deep and delicious.  Flavors of cassis, some blueberries, spice and char.  Good balance.  Long finish.  This is still young and will get better.  Drink over the next ten to fifteen years.  Great on its own, this will work with bigger dishes (not sea food).  It would be nice with Roasted and Stuffed Bell Peppers.  

This is a 51%/49% blend of Cabernet Sauvignon and Shiraz.  Purple in color, opaque and bright.  The nose has cassis, black raspberries, graphite, black pepper, spice and char.  Full bodied.  Firm tannins.  Good balance.  On the palate, this is delicious.  Flavors of cassis, \black cherries, black raspberries, slight herbal note (mint?), spice and char.  Long finish.  This is deep and complex if still very young.  Drink over the next ten to fifteen years.  This is great on its own and will work well with grilled meat, fowl or veggies.
 

This includes 1% Merlot in the blend.  Purple in color, opaque and bright.  The nose is classic with cassis, slight tobacco, spice, chocolate and char.  Full bodied.  Medium to firm tannins.  Good balance and acidity.  On the palate, this drinks easy.  The fruit is somewhat concentrated with flavors of cassis, plums, slight dry forest floor, chocolate and spice.  Good finish.  This should be cellared for a few years and then drink for eight to twelve after that.  Nice on its own, this will work with with meat or fowl based dishes.  BBQ Chicken would be a good choice.   

It was great to try this wine.  I was a buyer of this wine for a long time, but, it kind of fell off my radar (there are only so many high end bottles I can buy), but this is one to revisit.  It is a blend of 90% Cabernet Sauvignon and 10% Cabernet Franc.  purple in color, opaque and shimmering bright.  The nose has cassis, cedar, blueberries, cloves, baking spices and slight char.  Full bodied.  Firm tannins.  Good balance.  On the palate, this is young but delicious.  Great texture.  Flavors of cassis, blueberries and black cherries with some cedar and spice.  Long finish.  This is deep a

Bottle No.

Washington’s Columbia Valley has long produced Cabernet. Though vine plantings started in the 1960s, it was the 1930s that saw the plantings of traditional grapes like Cabernet and Chardonnay. Now the Valley is well know and producing some very good wine. On initial opening of the 2022 Greenwing Cabernet, there is noticeable jammy fruit and as first an overt sweetness. But this Cabernet needs time to evolve and within 45 minutes the sweet fruit has subsided and the tannins and oak take over, giving you a quality Cabernet.

This blend of 45% Tempranillo, 45% Garnacha Tinta with 10% Cabernet Sauvignon blended in, this wine, made with organic grapes, is truly a stellar piece of winemaking considering it’s $13 price tag. Not only is it seamlessly blended but the acidity supports the impeccable fruit of blackberry, black cherry, plum, cassis, and light blueberry. There’s a solid core of acidity that runs through this supporting the structure of the wine. A scant four months of aging in small French oak accentuates the fruit.

Plush is not a usual descriptor for a wine, however this Cabernet is like velvet; smooth, silky, tactile, luxurious…effortless. The moderately tight tannic structure supports black cherry, boysenberry, blueberry and huckleberry fruit notes, while the wood influence provides a sense of stability, almost like a guardrail, keeping the fruit, acidity and tannins in check. This is one of those wines that when you drink it you are reminded of how different iterations of Cabernet can be, and at this moment, the polished feel of this wine is like an old friend, comfortable and welcomed.

One of the best 20`17 Napa Cabs I have tried.  Inky purple in color, opaque and shimmering bright.  The nose has cassis, cedar, tobacco, char and spice.  Full bodied.  Firm tannins.  Great balance.  On the palate, this is delicious.  Flavors of cassis, some black cherries, with a nice earthiness and a touch of char.  Long finish.  This has a nice depth and complexity and unwinds in the glass.  It will still gain more with further cellaring.  Drink over the next ten to fifteen years.  Great on its own, this will work with meat, fowl or veggies.  A nice wine with a grilled steak off the grill