Cabernet Sauvignon

Inky purple in color, opaque and bright.  The nose is great with cassis, graphite, slight cedar, spice and char.  Full bodied.  Firm tannins.  Great balance.  On the palate, this is developing nicely.  Not yet at peak but not a baby either.  Great texture.  Flavors of cassis, spice and earth.  long finish.  Delicious.  Drink over the next twenty years.  Great on its own, this would work well with roasted or grilled beef or poultry.  

This is a kosher wine from Israel.  It is an 80/20 blend of Cabernet Sauvignon to Merlot for this vintage.  Deep garnet in color, mostly opaque and bright.  The nose is nice with black cherries, some black raspberries, cherries, and slight milk chocolate.  Full bodied.  Light to medium tannins.  Moderate acidity.  On the palate, this drinks easy.  Cherries and black cherries.  OK Finish.  This drinks easy and will work well on its own, for the Seder, or with Chicken or Brisket.  Drink now.  

While this is the 38th year of this bottling, it represents a sort of reboot as their vineyard sources have changed.  In addition, they brought in winemaker Mike Smith as a consultant.  Of course, the proof is in the pudding, er, wine.  This is a blend of 85% Cabernet Sauvignon, 10% Petit Verdot and 5% Malbec. Purple in color, opaque and bright.  Pop and pour, this took about an hour to start to open and really got going at the two hour mark.  The nose has cassis, blueberries, plums, black cherries, spice, and a slight minty (Eucalyptus?) note.  Full bodied.  Firm tannins.

This is Cabernet Sauvignon from Mt. Veeder and St.

if Napa had First Growth designations, this would be on the list.  The Lafite of Napa.  Long history, Great wines, and a Reasonably large production.  Such consistency.  At age 22, this is cruising along without showing any old age.  Purple in color, garnet at the rim, opaque and bright.  The nose has cassis, pencil lead, cedar, smoke and just a hint of leather.  Full bodied.  Medium tannins.  Great balance.  On the palate, this is deep and complex.  Flavors of cassis, slight earthiness, char and just a bit of leather.  Long finish.  Delicious.  Great on its own, this would be classic with

Beautiful bottle.  Inky purple in color, opaque and bright.  The nose has cassis, blueberries, dark chocolate, slight graphite and spice.  Full bodied.  Firm tannins.  On the palate, this is delicious.  Great balance.  Flavors of cassis, blueberries, dark chocolate and spice.  Long finish.  This is young but drinks nicely with a bit of air.  It will get better.  Drink over the next twenty to thirty years.  Great on its own, for now, stick to rich or fatty meats, but also roasted vegies will work.

The label states they make single vineyard, single varietal wines.  First time trying one.  Purple in color, opaque and bright.  The nose is nice with cassis, slight cedar, spice and a slight earthiness.  Full bodied.  Medium tannins.  On the palate, this is concentrated and deep.  Lots of cassis flavors with some earthiness and  char.  Long finish.  Very good.  More concentrated and piercing than complex but that works for this wine.  Drink over the next ten to fifteen years.  It will work well with roasted or grilled meats and fowl.  

Wow.  It had been some years since tasting this Cuvee and I don't remember it being this good.  Purple in color, opaque and  shimmering bright.  The nose is powerful with cassis, cedar, dark chocolate, and spice.  Full bodied.  Great balance and energy.  Firm tannins.  On the palate, this is young but delicious.  Almost, but quite, jammy.  Flavors of cassis, chocolate with underlying char and spice.  Deep.  Long finish.  This is drinking well but will develop.  Drink over the next twenty to twenty five years.  It was great with a Portobello Napoleon dish and will work well with most meats,

This was a new wine for me.  Ghost Block has a great story.  About 8 million years ago, it was on a mountain top above Stags Leap in the Vaca Mountains.  The Mountain collapsed and fell over on its side so although the vineyard sits on the valley floor it is geologically the same as those on the tops of the  mountain.  Purple in color, opaque and bright.  The nose has a bit of volatile acidity on it.  For my tastes it is just enough to raise the aromatics.

Wow.  Great showing.  This is a blend of 84% Cabernet Sauvignon, 8% Petite Verdot, and 8% Cabernet Franc.  Purple in color, ruby at the rim, opaque and bright.  The nose is great.  Cassis, cedar, spice, tobacco and slight char.  Full bodied.  Firm tannins.  Great texture.  On the palate, this is deep.  Flavors of cassis, tobacco, slight earthiness and char.  Long finish.  This is delicious and open.  It will evolve more over the next twenty to thirty years but not sure it gets better.  This would be classic with Lamb but was great with some cheeses as well.