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| Drinking Windows and Values |
| Community Tasting History |
| Community Tasting Notes (average 90.6 pts. and median of 91 pts. in 34 notes) - hiding notes with no text | | | Tasted by HaraldS on 5/14/2018 & rated 89 points: Unfortunately, i waited too long. I remember tasting the wine 5 years ago and it was a huge fruit bomb but with nice tannin and an interesting bright cedar.
Today, i can say i have waited too long and the wine is over the hill. The nose had some blueberry and perhaps some soft cedar. On the palate, flavors are very muted, hardly any fruit left. A light hint of of some acidity and something like cedar.
Too bad (1022 views) | | | Tasted by Leomania on 5/8/2015 & rated 91 points: Last bottle. Notes consistent with previous. Holding up just fine, but it needs no more cellaring, it's terrific. (2245 views) | | | Tasted by King Cab on 9/15/2012 & rated 93 points: Dark with just a hint of age on the edges. Nose is the big story here; the most interesting blue/black fruits of sweet plums, blueberry and blackberries intermingled to be more than the sum of each. Very pretty and satisfying with very pretty violets, something akin to the C. Howard Violet Chewing Gum, which when I find, I truly love. The caveat on this one is air; Air is most definitely not this wines friend, neither are rooms temps above 65ish. At that point you get a drying slightly elevated acidity but staying in the range I recommend, you will enjoy this. I find myself liking my Cabs more in the 60-65 range these days. Decent balance and nicely pure, this remains true to what it has always been: just a wonderful distinctive cab, perfect for an early Fall in day. Lovely fruits, interesting extras and a bit of vintage flash make this just a ‘winner’ today. The finish is long, keeping all the pretty fruits in play. Did I tell you about this ones nose??? (4777 views) | | | Tasted by Leomania on 6/28/2012 & rated 91 points: Drank this with a prime rib dinner at Kualapu'u Cookhouse on Moloka'i, HI. Notes consistent with previous; simply a terrific bottle of Napa Cabernet. (4141 views) | | | Tasted by Katie&Mike on 4/29/2012 & rated 90 points: This wine is drinking at its peak and may be heading downward. Drink up! It's a delicious. (4467 views) | | | Tasted by Leomania on 12/31/2011 & rated 92 points: I was looking for an opportunity to share this bottle with someone, and New Years' Eve provided it. No decanter available so poured through Vinturi; each glass needed considerable time to open up. Still, it was much more approachable than I had feared. Interestingly, a lot of red fruit in the nose with notes of chocolate but in the mouth it was all blackberry, black currant, cocoa and a bit of leather. Medium acidity and well-balanced tannins. A perfect bottle to finish out the year. (3937 views) | | | Tasted by BSZach1 on 9/4/2011 & rated 89 points: Very, very good but not outstanding. Dark fruit and very smooth. Wouldn't run out for another bottle though. (3183 views) | | | Tasted by King Cab on 9/2/2011 & rated 93 points: I am obviously in the minority here, but that's never bothered me before. I love this wine.
Some wines take different routes to get to where they are going, others stay true and sure, hardly ever budging. This is the latter.
It's super dark and still ominous. Nose is all dark fruits of black-cherries, currant, and soft ripe super-black plums. The cola notes are in play as is some creme de cassis and cardamom. Pure and precise while being classic and gripping, this remains the cab lovers cab. Masculine and bordering a heavy weighted wine, this has gripping tannins---still, with a slightly elevated acidity; this seems about right for such a big boned wine and without this could easily fall apart. Notes of graphite, cedar box and hints of exotic tea leaf really make this a well balanced wine that carries much interest within its suit of armour. Finish remains lively with the dark fruits never wavering for pole position. This is really a satisfying Napa Cabernet. Last tasted with Mike Hirby when he visited with the CLONYC gang back in October, 2009. This has barely moved an inch since..... (2622 views) | | | Tasted by tanninbomb on 3/2/2011 & rated 90 points: This wine is Ozzy Osborne. Weird, oddly charming and "dark" -- all in one bottle. Changes radically over my three days -- rich, deep, dark fruit and caramel on Day One; a near chemical lab on Day Two (that must be the Ozzy part coming out; graphite and earth on Day Three. (2377 views) | | | Tasted by Taylor56 on 2/12/2011 & rated 90 points: Decanted 90 minutes. Very pretty purple in the glass. Red and black fruit in the nose. Medium weight. A classic 04 Napa Cab with a nice juicy mouth. Ready now with a decant. (2150 views) | | | Tasted by rjonwine@gmail.com on 12/19/2010 flawed bottle: Holiday Gathering and Winetasting (Sandy & Michael's, Los Altos, California): Corked (2505 views) | | | Tasted by tanninbomb on 8/28/2010 & rated 91 points: This was a complex personality, not in only a good. layered way. Black, black, black throughout -- black cherry, black plum with licorice. not as much classic currant as you would expect form a cab. Silky but firm tannins held the whole thing together and left you with a finish of cola. Not anywhere near as good on second night (in fridge with vacuum) but then emerged with a nice softness on third night, which I did not expect. (2569 views) | | | Tasted by bigwineguy420 on 11/24/2009 & rated 91 points: CLONYC Mike Hirby Dinner, 11/23/09 Mike brought this along as a treat for us but also to give us a point of reference for the Rock Ledge wines he is making for himself under his Relic label. This was also the first vintage of Rockledge Cab he made. Another point of uniqueness is that this wine is all from Clone 7, which Mike really likes for the soils in this rocky vineyard. Dark ruby/purple in the glass. Black and brooding, with notes of ripe plums. Supple on the palate with more black fruit, this wine to me was also starting to faintly show some secondary characteristics of cedar and spice. (2926 views) | | | Tasted by King Cab on 10/10/2009 & rated 93 points: 30 minutes decant. This is one of the darlest, densest wines I have had in months. Swirling coats the glass with a ruby tint. The nose has some cherry cola, creme de cassis and black currant jam. The palate shows a wonderful explosion of black fruits: Currant, black cherries, black berries, black plums. There is some soy and a hint of vanilla. All this is engulfed in a blanket of chewy textured tannins. Pure and clean, this is huge! A wonderful acidid note toward the finish. A very powerful cabernet that begs for a grilled steak or chops. I think time will soften this, but its so enjoyable now with an extended decant (My third bottle). A super finish that I can still taste after 2 minutes while typing this. Wow.
Mike Hirby is one talented wine-maker. I am so excited he is visiting with my tasting group CLONYC next month to share some of his new releases. (3259 views) | | | Tasted by Phin on 8/8/2009 & rated 95 points: As expected from Hirby, Realm-esque. Mouthcoating tannins with red and black deep fruit. 1 hour decant. Needs some more time, big wine. (3116 views) | | | Tasted by King Cab on 3/15/2009 & rated 92 points: Pitch black and brooding color with purple/magenta tinged edges. The nose is all black fruits. Nice.
The palate reveals some sweet black fruits of cassis, black cherries wit some cola and dusty chewy tannins. A wonderfully balanced cab with lots of full fledged cab stuffing. Very full bodied and plush mouths feel, this had a long elegant finish. Very nice wine albeit slightly four square and a bit clumsy this time around the edges. A few years will tame but surely enjoyable now. (3198 views) | | | Tasted by King Cab on 9/13/2008 & rated 93 points: Nice deep color (Do I always need to tell you that?) A great nose of crushed fresh black cherries with some black currants and red plums. This has a very elegant and precision driven pure core of chewy tannins and a medley of most of the cab fruits I want, with a slightly elevated level of oak that should quiet down nicely (oak is not an enemy of mine). Good vanilla bean and espresso with some freshly scratched wet leather and earth. After some amazing cabs tasted in the last 8 days, this shows amazingly well for its price point. I'm a fan and will be stocking up. (3482 views) | | | Only displaying the 25 most recent notes - click to see all notes for this wine... |
| By Linda Murphy
JancisRobinson.com (6/23/2008)
(Rockledge, The Rocks Cabernet Sauvignon St Helena Red) Subscribe to see review text. | By Stephen Tanzer
Vinous, May/June 2006, IWC Issue #126
(Rockledge Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon The Rocks St. Helena) Subscribe to see review text. |
NOTE: Scores and reviews are the property of JancisRobinson.com and Vinous. (manage subscription channels) |
| Cabernet SauvignonCabernet Sauvignon is probably the most famous red wine grape variety on Earth. It is rivaled in this regard only by its Bordeaux stablemate Merlot, and its opposite number in Burgundy, Pinot Noir. From its origins in Bordeaux, Cabernet has successfully spread to almost every winegrowing country in the world. It is now the key grape variety in many first-rate New World wine regions, most notably Napa Valley, Coonawarra and Maipo Valley. Wherever they come from, Cabernet Sauvignon wines always seem to demonstrate a handful of common character traits: deep color, good tannin structure, moderate acidity and aromas of blackcurrant, tomato leaf, dark spices and cedarwood.
Used as frequently in blends as in varietal wines, Cabernet Sauvignon has a large number of common blending partners. Apart from the obvious Merlot and Cabernet Franc, the most prevalent of these are Malbec, Petit Verdot and Carmenere (the ingredients of a classic Bordeaux Blend), Shiraz (in Australia's favorite blend) and in Spain and South America, a Cabernet – Tempranillo blend is now commonplace. Even the bold Tannat-based wines of Madiran are now generally softened with Cabernet SauvignonUSAAmerican wine has been produced since the 1500s, with the first widespread production beginning in New Mexico in 1628. Today, wine production is undertaken in all fifty states, with California producing 84% of all U.S. wine. The continent of North America is home to several native species of grape, including Vitis labrusca, Vitis riparia, Vitis rotundifolia, and Vitis vulpina, but the wine-making industry is based almost entirely on the cultivation of the European Vitis vinifera, which was introduced by European settlers. With more than 1,100,000 acres (4,500 km2) under vine, the United States is the fourth-largest wine producing country in the world, after Italy, Spain, and France.California2021 vintage: "Unlike almost all other areas of the state, the Russian River Valley had higher than normal crops in 2021, which has made for a wine of greater generosity and fruit forwardness than some of its stablemates." - Morgan Twain-Peterson Napa Valley Napa Valley Wineries and Wine (Napa Valley Vintners)St. Helena Appellation Napa Valley
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