Reviews

Outpost Immigrant True Vineyard

Previous notes apply. What a great wine. Right out of the gate on PnP, this was already captivating and ready for some fun. Explosive, but still managing to find a noteworthy seamlessness that…

Revana Cabernet Sauvignon Howell Mountain

Much improved since I last had this wine 6 months ago. More captivating in both the flavor and complexity department, with dark black and blue core fruit, plum, black raspberry, black currant, black…

Arkenstone Sauvignon Blanc

Crisp green and yellow citrus, fresh squeezed lime juice, lemon and lime zest, kiwi, white melon, honeydew, white acacia flowers, citrus blossom, lemon grass, dry hillside grass, fresh dry hay, white…

Arkenstone Estate

Barrel sample. Explosive and attention-grabbing notes of blackberry, fresh blueberry pie crust, Amarena black cherry syrup, cassis, black currant, unripe purple plum, black igneous rock, wet river…

Arkenstone Sauvignon Blanc

Barrel sample. A gorgeous example of a domestic Sauvignon Blanc. Quite possibly one of the best examples of the varietal I've ever had. Notes of lemon and yellow citrus, tropical fruit, grass,…

Stephen & Walker Trust Winery Limited Cabernet Sauvignon Howell Mountain

A somewhat enjoyable sipper (paired fine with some awesome Old Chicago pizza), but seemingly on the decline. Flavors were a little plumy, with muddled black cherry and some cedar-earth notes. A bit…

TOR Cabernet Sauvignon Cimarossa Vineyard

Same as previous notes. Usually in that 95-96+ category for me. This was almost there, but developed a bit of a plumy tinge on the back end after a few hours of air. PnP might be better service on…

TOR Cabernet Sauvignon Cimarossa Vineyard

Similar to all of my previous notes. This is coming back around to the epic showing it had a year ago. A seamlessness continues to develop on this wine that delivers a good combination of pleasurable…

Hall Cabernet Sauvignon Howell Mountain

Same as my previous notes from last year. Much better than the '14 Kathryn tasted next to it. The Howell remains in the 91-93 point max range for me. A good bottle of wine with the usual "crowd…

Selah Cabernet Sauvignon

Much like TRB's Caterwaul, the Selah (one of TRB's 45+ other ventures) is also a fairly straight-forward, walk-in-the-park version of the varietal. This is certainly NOT a "mountain fruit" rendition…

Outpost Cabernet Sauvignon

Same as previous notes. Not a sin to pop the cork presently, but giving it a couple of years to fill out completely would be most prudent. Ideally wait until 2019+. QPR is pretty darn good on this…

Saunter Wines Cabernet Sauvignon Eagle Summit Vineyard

Same as my other notes. This filled out nicely after a short bit of air. Deep and dark, if not a little round and soft on the back end. The grip on this wine is more "medium" than I normally prefer,…

TOR Cabernet Sauvignon Cimarossa Vineyard

Same notes as last year. Really nice wine after about two-three hours in the decanter. Consumption temp remained at about 54 degrees the entire time, which was perfect. Black licorice, asphalt, dark…

Fleury Estate Winery BDX

This started out with a great rush of typical broad-shouldered Howell Mountain fruit. Fairly plush and round though, with its tight grip immediately after PnP only lasting about 20 minutes before it…

Moone-Tsai Vineyards Hillside Blend

Much like the Napa Cabernet version, this was a fairly simple walk throughout consumption. A bit of an odd interplay between the jammy plum and musty earth notes, with the back end a little clunky.…

Revana Cabernet Sauvignon Howell Mountain

Tight and restrained, with a more earth-driven profile than the Napa or the Block 6. The mountain fruit was under lock-and-key for the most part throughout the entire consumption. Still, it had a…

Outpost Cabernet Sauvignon

Same as my notes from last year, except that I would project an optimum drinking window as far out as after 2020 or 2021+. The first few hours of consumption were so constricted it was difficult to…

Haber Family Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon Howell Mountain

Completely cooked to the point that even the stewed plum and raisin flavors were only barely identifiable as fruit. Beef broth and wrinkly raisin aftertaste. A muddled grapey note showed up briefly,…

Dark Matter Cabernet Sauvignon Limitless

Another Mondavi sister (Angelina) creation. The Limitless was an ok representation of Howell Mountain (different areas than Aloft), but it fell behind even the Aloft Cabernet in terms of complexity…

Aloft Cabernet Sauvignon

Interesting from a science project standpoint. This showed advanced flavors of over-ripe, mature black and red currant, cigar leaf, leather, mushroom, tea, and a streak of deep black cherry. Served…

Aloft Cabernet Sauvignon

A decent example of Howell Mountain, with black and dark red core fruit, some spice, a little dark chocolate, and creamy oak. Mid-palate was more medium than I would have preferred, but it had…

Outpost Cabernet Sauvignon

Shut down and totally constricted, with practically every identifiable flavor showing nothing beyond being completely linear and narrow. As others have noted, the core fruit is especially closed. DRY…

TOR Cabernet Sauvignon Cimarossa Vineyard

Wine is a funny thing. Four months ago I drank a bottle and it was just oozing black fruit elixir. It was a 98/99 point production the likes of which I hadn't experienced much with Tor.

Ladera Cabernet Sauvignon Reserve

Medium bodied and fairly thin mid-palate. Tasted somewhat cheap for a Howell Mointain Reserve Cabernet. Performed at around the $30 level. Some decent dark fruit flavors, but not much complexity and…

Outpost Cabernet Sauvignon True Vineyard

No joke, this is a colossal monster of a wine. Massive tannins and dark purple and black fruit on the attack...and I mean ATTACK. Hits you like a sledge hammer at first, but in the absolute best of…