Cabernet Sauvignon

This is 100% Cabernet Sauvignon from the four best barrels in the cellar.  Purple in color, opaque and bright.  The nose is deep and interesting.  Aromas of cassis, black olives, spice and slight earthiness.  Full bodied.  Wonderful concentrated plush texture.  Firm tannins.  On the palate, cassis, ash and char.  Good acidity.  Long finish.  Still young, this is drinking quite well with a bit of air.

This is a blend of 50% Cabernet Sauvignon, 28% Merlot, 13% Cabernet Franc and 9% Petit Verdot.  Purple in color, opaque and bright.  The nose is open and awesome.  Cassis, black cherries, interesting black olive note, fresh tobacco, plums, spice and char.  Probably more.  Wow.  Full bodied.  Firm tannins.  Great energy.  On the palate, this is getting close to mature but still five or more years from really being there.  Cassis, black cherries, tobacco and spice.  Deep and complex.  Long finish.  This will drink well for another twenty to twenty five years.  It would of course be great with

Always a pleasure to drink Schrader which is of course, made by one of the top winemakers anywhere, Thomas Rivers Brown.  This wine has been compared to Haut Brion (possibly my favorite wine from Bordeaux) and the comparison is apt.  Purple in color, opaque and bright.  The nose has cassis, blueberries, "gravel", ash, spice and char.  Full bodied.  Slick but plush texture.  Medium to firm tannins.  On the palate, this is delicious.  Cassis, blueberries and underlying gravel/char.  Long finish.  This will get better but no harm opening now.  Drink over the next fifteen to twenty years.  Grea

Great to revisit this.  First tasted in December, 2002 (notes are on this site) and it has improved a bit but it can still get better.  This wine is made by Andy Erikson and from vineyards on Atlas Peak and Soda Canyon.  Inky purple in color, opaque and bright.  The nose is powerful and open with cassis, cedar, blueberries, chocolate, char.  Lush texture.  Firm tannins (the wine  had not been open long).  Great balance.  On the palate, cassis, cedar, charred earth and spice.  Long finish but already performing great.

It was great to try this bottle at age 10.  The grapes are grown in the heart of the historic To Kalon vineyard although for legal reasons, they can't put that on the label.  Just gorgeous!  The bottle was opened and allowed to breather for 13 hours prior to serving but not decanted.  Purple in color, mostly opaque and bright.  The nose is deep and complex with cassis, cigar box, dust, spice and warm earth.  Full bodied.  Firm tannins.  Great energy and balance.  On the palate, this is young but open (the advantage of old vines on the valley floor).  Complex and layered.  Cassis, spice, ear

This is a blend of the three single vineyard wines that Vida Valiente releases.  The winery was formed with a charitable arm and its Foundation supports lower income students going to Stanford who lack the financial resources.  One hundred dollars from every bottle sold goes to support this Foundation.  The winemaker, Sam Kaplan, identifies particular barrels to achieve his goal for this wine.  This is the first vintage and like all of their wines, it lists 14.8% abv on the label.  Purple in color, ruby at the rim, opaque and bright.  The nose is tight but opens to cassis, dark chocolate, s

This is from the  home vineyard of Vita Valiente.  The vineyard was planted in 2018 at the base of  Glass Mountain in St. Helena.  Beautifully packaged with an etched in paper label.  Decanted for about four hours.  14.8% abv.

Decanted for about four hours prior to serving.  Inky purple in color, opaque and shimmering bright.  The nose is quite tight.  Over the evening it opened a bit, but the bottle got drained, so nothing left on Day 2.  It happens.  Some cassis, slight graphite, baking spice and char.  Full bodied.  Very, very firm tannins.  That said, what a wonderful plush but silky texture.  Great energy and acidity.  Balanced.  The palate is a bit more opened.  Cassis, slight graphite, a bit earthy and char.  Deep.  Long finish.  If drinking now, give it an eight hour decant but this really needs five year

This is grown at a high elevation.  This is the first vintage as the vines are only three years old (planted in 2018).  14.8% abv.Inky purple in color, opaque and bright.  The nose is very nice.  Cassis, saddle leather, and spice.  Full bodied.  Firm tannins.  Plush texture.  On the palate, this is very accessible.  I suspect subsequent vintages will be tighter on release.  Lots of concentrated cassis notes with some earthiness and char.  A bit of a saline note on the finish.  This is not an opulent wine (which I was expecting) but still has power.  Cellaring for a few years should be rewar

This is a lovely Washington Cabernet (from an Oregon producer).  Deep garnet in color, mostly opaque and bright.  The nose has cassis, dust and a slight minty note.  Medium to full bodied.  Medium tannins.  On the palate, this has cassis, bell pepper and slight tobacco notes.  Some depth.  Still young but showing some evolution.  Nice finish.  This is a more traditional (not extracted) Cabernet that seems to speak of place.   It will improve with a bit of cellaring.  Drink over the next ten years.