Reviews

Hall Cabernet Sauvignon Howell Mountain

Same as last month. Last bottle. Won't miss it. Pass.

Myriad Cellars Cabernet Sauvignon Elysian Beckstoffer Dr. Crane Vineyard

Smaller Coravin pour, with little opportunity to thoroughly evaluate, but enough time to know that this wine is going to need a few years to fully come together. Much less seamless in its current…

Fuse Wines Cabernet Sauvignon

Medium-to-light flavors of diluted black cherry, red and black currant, and some subtle earthy spice. Mid-palate is medium in weight and somewhat decent considering the price-point here, but its…

Myriad Cellars Cabernet Sauvignon Beckstoffer Georges III Vineyard

Previous notes apply. Super smooth and agreeable. A little round and plush this time around, with a fruity finish that was certainly flavorful. An easy gulper at this stage.

Celani Family Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon Ardore

Same notes as in April. Rich, chewy, and black. Chocolate chunk meets blackberry and dark black raspberry core fruit. A touch heavy and thick, but delivers high on the flavor scale. Drink now and…

Buccella Cabernet Sauvignon

Similar to my experience with this wine a few months ago, though after a couple of hours in the glass, it really opened up and started to show some wonderful black fruit flavors. Some nice dark earth…

Carter Cellars Cabernet Sauvignon Weitz Vineyard

It has been two years since I last had this wine. This go-around, PnP was strikingly similar to my last encounter with it. Balled-up, fairly acidic, and clenching the palate like Wile E. Coyote…

Pott Wine Cabernet Sauvignon Turf War Bisagno Vineyard

Raspberry coulis, red cherry preserve/compote, purple plum, cassis, and some subtle minerality. Drinking surprisingly well on a PnP, with just a little swirling in the glass needed to coax out…

Purlieu Cabernet Sauvignon Teucer Vineyard

Finished the bottle after a Coravin a few days prior. I didn't bother with a decant. PnP and a few minutes of swirling in the glass was perfect. Very much fan of this wine. Previous notes from…

Scarecrow Cabernet Sauvignon

Incredibly viscous and powerful on entry, and still managing to carry out a notable balance across the palate; all the while, its delivery (though intense and driven) was still fairly seamless. Super…

Pott Wine Cabernet Sauvignon Le Nouveau Western Star Vineyard

Plum and black cherry dominate, with some detectable earth/dust, unsmoked cigar, and RC cola. Mostly on the fruit-forward side of the spectrum, with the plum and black cherry carrying the majority of…

Pott Wine Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley

Red plum, red and black cherry, and some faint vanilla. Medium all the way around. It's good. It does the job fairly well considering it's QPR. Don't expect it to help you pass a math test, but it's…

Purlieu Cabernet Sauvignon Teucer Vineyard

Crisis averted from 3 days ago with a previous bottle from 10/20/18 that must have been cooked a bit for whatever reason. This bottle tonight was what I expect from this wine. Fantastic! Previous…

Spottswoode Cabernet Sauvignon Estate

From a .375. Notes of red and black currant, red and black cherry, red plum, cranberry, unsmoked cigar, dust, and faint spice box. Most notable in its delivery of hyper pure fruit; medium in body and…

Fait-Main Cabernet Sauvignon Beckstoffer Las Piedras

There's a big part of me that almost grows tired of anointing super high scores to some of these Napa Cabernets. Maybe I should stay in that agreeable 94/95 realm when something is really good, just…

Purlieu Cabernet Sauvignon Teucer Vineyard

This particular sample threw out a distinct plum note (bordering on raisin) that really heightened the sensation of ripeness in the overall flavor profile. It was good, but it was certainly not the…

B Cellars Cabernet Sauvignon Oakville

Black cherry and black raspberry dominate here, with some red cherry, red and black currant, and cranberry flavors showing up to the party as well. Brilliant cut and acid here. Ripe but not rich,…

B Cellars Cabernet Sauvignon Barrel Selection Beckstoffer Bourn Vineyard

Black cherry, crunchy cranberry, white pepper, spice, red and black currant, and slight hints of dust. The Bourn impresses with its notable acid and grip, though it does ride fairly high on the…

B Cellars Cabernet Sauvignon Beckstoffer Dr. Crane Vineyard

Previous notes from February still apply. Black cherry, black raspberry, black and red licorice, dark cassis/black cherry syrup, bitter chocolate, Asian spices, and some blackberry pie crust. Hyper…

B Cellars Cabernet Sauvignon Beckstoffer To Kalon Vineyard

Served side-by-side with the 2015 B Cellars BTK. This 2016 (a barrel sample) is similar to when I had it back in February, though it seems to be honing-in more on its identity at this stage. The…

B Cellars Cabernet Sauvignon Beckstoffer To Kalon Vineyard

Inching its way in excellence, the BTK continues its trajectory toward showing a great combination of cerebral interest and soulful flavor. Previous notes apply, though I found this sample to be more…

B Cellars Cabernet Sauvignon Star Vineyard

A lot of fruit going on here, with the front end leading the charge with ripe blackberry, deep/ripe black and red raspberry, and some spice. Fuzzy tannins provide some speed bumps in the delivery,…

Purlieu Cabernet Sauvignon Beckstoffer To Kalon Vineyard

Same as previous notes. Great structure and frame, with the flavors starting to peek out nicely. The bone is still bigger than the meat at this juncture. Continuing to hold another couple of years…

Myriad Cellars Cabernet Sauvignon Steltzner Vineyard

Strikingly similar to the barrel sample that I had last year.... eventually... A Cinderella story of a wine tasting if there ever was one.

Hall Cabernet Sauvignon Kathryn Hall Napa Valley

It's been almost two years since I last had this wine. It has certainly found a glide in terms of approachability, but it seems to have lost a little bit of drive and intensity since November 2016.…