From the Valley floor in Oak Knoll. Purple in color. The nose is nice with cassis, cherries and baking spices. The palate has medium tannins. Ripe cassis fruit and a bit of pepperyness. Drinks great on its own but would work with heavier foods. Drinks easy but there is some depth and should improve with some short term ageing. Retails for $65.
This is the basic Cabernet from Myriad, superstar winemaker Mike Smith's own winery. This is in a great place and drinking great right now but has a long life ahead. Big and full of fruit and power, but not over the top. Purple in color. The nose has cassis, slight char, baking spice and slight black cherries. On the palate, lots of cassis and black cherries. Also underlying minerality and char. Medium tannins. Great balance. Long finish. This needs heartier food and also drinks well on its own. Delicious. $60 retail is actually a good value for this level of Napa Cab. Perhaps
This is an excellent wine. A blend of 50% Sangiovese, 20% Cabernet Sauvignon, and 30% Merlot with grapes from Atlas Peak and Howell Mountain in Napa Valley. Consumed over two days, this was better on Day 2. Purple in color. On day one, the nose shows black cherries, slight cedar and a clove/bitters quality to it that is very interesting. On the palate, this is not a big, bold wine. Rather, there are plenty of concentrated fruits, mostly cherries and black cherries with a slight bitterness (again in a good way) to it. On Day 2 (re-corked and left on the counter), this wine really open
Pop and pour. Purple with ruby swirls, still looking bright. The nose is nice. Cassis, dried currents, tobacco and dust. On the palate, this took some time to open and then was singing. At peak or perhaps just a bit past, this won't last as long as the 01 or the 94, but it has plenty of great drinking left. Layers of cassis, dried fruits and dry earth. Good balance. Very food friendly. A lot in common with and older Bordeaux but still has some energy and sunshine screaming California.
Pop and pour, like many 2012's this seems a bit shut down right now. Luckily, there was time to wait. After about an hour it opened nicely. inky purple in color. The nose has black cherries, cassis, spice, dried cherries and a slight tobacco note. On the palate, this is drinking quite well. Black cherries and spice. Nice texture. Sill young, it unwinds in the glass. Deep and tightly complex. Good finish. This is a robust wine that needs about five years of good cellaring. It has a couple of decades left. Will work with bigger foods but works great on its own right now.
Wow. This wine should make old bones, but it is so good now, it is not likely to. Stunning wine that seemingly gets better and better. This bottle was consumed over 4 hours and the last glass was the best. Inky purple in color. The nose has cassis, graphite, cedar, blueberries and spice. On the palate, this has a seamless texture. Delicious. Deep and tightly layered; it explodes in the glass. Tons of cassis and blue berries layered with minerality and spice. Medium tannins. Long finish. It does need bigger or spicier food, but it is oh so good.
2012 is such an interesting vintage. An excellent one to be sure, but the wines were so open on release and they have slowly closed over time. This one was tight and really needed a few hours of air to open up and show its stuff. Purple in color with some ruby swirls. The nose is great. Very concentrated cassis, spice, leather and slight black cherries. On the palate, this is again quite concentrated. It opens in the glass with plenty of cassis. Medium tannins. A fair amount of oak/spice still left. This probably needs five more years of good cellaring to hit its peak. Will work
This was consumed over two days and distinctly better on Day 2. Purple in color. On Day 1, there is a lot of oak showing. The fruit is tight. On Day 2, the nose has nice cassis with spice and underlying char. On the palate, medium tannins. They integrate on Day 2 with nice cassis, black cherries and char. Some level of complexity. This needs a couple of years in the cellar. The difference between day 1 and day 2 was probably 3 points in terms of accessibility, complexity and friendliness. For a wine that retails for $40, show some patience. Might even have more upside to it in
Purple in color, opaque and bright. The nose is dusty with cassis, slight tobacco and slight cocoa. A bit drying on the palate. Nice cassis fruit. Some depth, there may be some upside to cellaring this wine for a few years. Light tannins. Not a huge wine at all. Will work with a wide variety of foods. Available at Nakedwines.com.
Purple/ruby in color. The nose has cassis, dust and a bit of spice. On the palate, this has firm tannins. Slightly tart acidity. Plenty of cassis fruit with an underlying grittiness which is interesting. It is a big and easy to drink Napa Cab but should have some upside over the next few years. Plenty of fruit and not over ripe. Will work with medium and heavier bodied foods. Available at Nakedwines.com.
