Reviews

Realm Cellars The Falstaff

Tasting with Juan at Realm.

Outpost Zinfandel Howell Mountain

Tasted at Outpost alongside the 2013 Zinfandel, 2014 Howell Cabernet, and 2014 True Cabernet.

Outpost Zinfandel Howell Mountain

Tasted at Outpost alongside the 2014 Zinfandel, 2014 Howell Cabernet, and 2014 True Cabernet.

Hartwell Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon Estate Reserve

Same as two weeks ago. A very nice comparison to the unreleased Realm Moonracer I had earlier in the day.

Caymus Cabernet Sauvignon

Vanilla extract, chocolate vodka liqueur, sweet chocolate truffles, vanilla schnapps, and bon-bons.

Favia Cabernet Sauvignon

Outstanding improvement from 6 months ago. About two hours in the decanter at 54 degrees (and then a little warm up to a cool room temperature at around 65 degrees) really brought this wine into a…

Joseph Phelps Insignia

Slow O2 for less than 30 minutes and swirled in the glass for another 30 minutes. Solid core fruit with a rounded, plush profile. Much more accessible than I thought it would be. Certainly showed…

Lokoya Cabernet Sauvignon Mt. Veeder

Drank alongside a 2012 Insignia. Both were solid, but the Lokoya had a little more complexity and earth nuances (which seemed much more indicative of the 2010 vintage). The Insignia was plush and…

Celani Family Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon

Same as my notes from June. I'm thinking holding this for another year is a good idea. Started to develop some nice dark chocolate notes that added interest on the final sips. 93+ points (inching to…

Becklyn Cellars Cabernet Sauvignon Reserve Moulds Vineyard

I gotta honestly say I don't know how anyone is drinking this right now without some SERIOUS airtime. PnP was like drinking cranberry juice. An hour in the decanter did next to nothing in terms of…

Scarlett Wines Cabernet Sauvignon Reserve

You've been wanting to try the 2014 Scarlett Reserve out...but don't. You'll think that the standard 2014 Scarlett isn't drinking too bad considering it's youth, so why not give the Reserve a…

Realm Cellars Cabernet Sauvignon Beckstoffer To Kalon Vineyard

PnP with a splash decant at around 54 degrees proved to be the best showing of the night for this wine. Extraordinary notes of black berry fruits, black currant, asphalt/road tar, dark chocolate,…

Lewelling Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon St. Helena

Similar to my previous notes, but this went down a tick for me to be honest. Turned a little plumy after about an hour of air. Thin mid-palate as well. QPR is obviously pretty darn good, but even at…

Rudius Cabernet Sauvignon Panek Vineyard

Same as my notes from six months ago except that this had a hard time shedding itself of a plum-tinged aftertaste until about 2+ hours of air managed to help bring out some deeper flavors. However,…

Becklyn Cellars Sauvignon Blanc McGah Vineyard

You can go ahead and copy and paste most of what Cristal2000 mentioned with anything I could hope to conjure up in terms of tasting notes for this wine. This was New Zealand SB right out of the gate…

Celani Family Vineyards Chardonnay Napa Valley

Same notes as 5 months ago. A very nice bottle of Chardonnay. Drink now and over the next couple of years.

Hartwell Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon Estate Reserve

Same notes as 3 months ago. A really nice dark chocolate and roasted coffee note appeared after about an hour or so of air, which really elevated the wine. 94-95 points on the final sips. The…

Odette Cabernet Sauvignon Estate

Same as my previous tasting notes. Others at the table loved this wine, commenting on its smooth and seamless personality. For me, it was certainly good, but it suffered from two things:

Kobalt Cabernet Sauvignon

Previous tasting notes apply. This thing played punching bag with a 2012 Odette served beside it. I'm loving the way the Kobalt is showing right now. Right up my alley. Paired incredibly well with a…

Myriad Cellars Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley

Still solid. 93-94 points. Previous notes apply. This bested a 2012 Boich GIII and a 2012 Pruett Taylor's Syrah by a decent margin. Drink now with no decant really necessary.

Boich Family Cellar Cabernet Sauvignon Beckstoffer Georges III Vineyard

Pretty much the same as six months ago. Previous notes apply. A little tight and less giving in terms of the immediacy of fruit. I wasn't getting a whole lot of personality from this little chameleon…

Myriad Cellars Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley

Same as my notes a month ago. 93-94? points. Comes off a little young (understandably); a little bit of a cocktail feel about it after about four+ hours of air. Like the 2013, this is an early…

Bevan Cellars Ontogeny

I definitely concur with much of what J_Smallwood had to say about this wine. This has certainly opened up quite a bit since I last had it back in February. After about an hour or two in a…

Shafer Relentless

Previous notes on specific flavors still apply. Awesome wine, and inching its way up in score for me as time goes on. PnP was near-perfect and ready right out of the gate.

Kobalt Cabernet Sauvignon

Same as my previous notes from May. Delicious wine. Didn't really even need a decant. After a few hours of air, it was gliding beautifully. A big fistful of Cabernet hendonism. Outstanding!