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| Drinking Windows and Values |
| Community Tasting History |
| Community Tasting Notes (average 90.6 pts. and median of 91 pts. in 130 notes) - hiding notes with no text | | | Tasted by loloFR on 3/16/2024 & rated 92 points: At peak, classic napa cab with very good fruit, well integrated oak and some sweetness (329 views) | | | Tasted by Philip67 on 2/2/2024 & rated 95 points: Gorgeous. Restrained yet demonstrating a generosity of ripe fruit. medium plus body. Long finish, some complexity. Has the structure for last for a long time. Drinking now. (496 views) | | | Tasted by mdennison on 3/25/2023 & rated 92 points: This is at the end of its prime, I would say. Very enjoyable. Great cab. (870 views) | | | Tasted by mdennison on 3/6/2023 & rated 90 points: Nearing the end of its life, but still quite good. Picked this up for 44.95 at our local Italian deli; a good value. (943 views) | | | Tasted by WineMan916 on 12/19/2022 & rated 80 points: Letting it open longer than usual. Very tannic from the start with lots of fruit; it tasted fine without all the tannins taking over. I aerated it twice with an improved profile. It could be at the end of its life, or it just needs some resuscitation. Tonight, it will tell. (982 views) | | | Tasted by denartcar on 11/25/2021 & rated 91 points: Well worth the wait. Very good full bodied cab. It was very delicious with our turkey dinner. Wine had aged well with no negatives. Clearly ready to be drunk (1422 views) | | | Tasted by TomKathy on 4/2/2021 & rated 93 points: Very smooth for a 12 yr old Cab (1717 views) | | | Tasted by Aparritz on 3/9/2020 & rated 93 points: A beautiful final hurrah to these three 08s. Perfect integration, definitely ready to drink, but also fine to hold for another year or two. Lots of dust and fruit but the savory notes from 12 years of age were just barely surfacing, which to me suggests a number of years of life yet. (2281 views) | | | Tasted by Tom Myers on 1/9/2020 & rated 92 points: Give it at least 30 minutes in a decanter (2404 views) | | | Tasted by ellisuhome on 12/31/2019: Not my fav (2246 views) | | | Tasted by tbell on 7/14/2019 & rated 93 points: Agree with sommdavidt review.
This wine is singing and in a perfect window. (2491 views) | | | Tasted by Somm David T on 6/29/2019 & rated 93 points: There is nothing like taking a $31 bottle of Napa Cabernet and turning it into liquid gold. All you have to do is buy a good producer’s decent vintage or better and hold it in bottle for nearly 10 years or longer. Bottle age can’t be accomplished in a decanter, no matter how long you decant it. It simply will not round out the wine, make the tannins well resolved, integrate all the flavors that equate to a nice complex wine.
I was saddened to see a quality Napa Valley Pioneer recently sell its winery. I am sure somewhere Joe Heitz is beside himself. However, nothing stands for forever. We’ll see what the new owners do with it. Certainly, the last free quality free tasting in Napa Valley is gone forever. To be continued...
The nose reveals; dark currants, ripe, ruby, slightly candied fruits of; blackberries, dark cherries, black raspberries, black plum, blueberries and cherry kirsch. Sweet tarry notes, black, rich, turned soil, anise, steep fruit tea, limestone minerals, dry crush rock, underbrush, soft leather, hints of dry herbs, moist clay with candied, bright, dark, red, blue florals and violets for days.
The body is full, very round and gorgeous across the palate. The tannins are about 80% resolved but, still showing some teeth. The structure, tension, length and balance have hit the top of the bell curve and will hold there awhile longer. There is nothing in this wine that bites back or is astringent. Dark currants, ripe, ruby, slightly candied fruits of; blackberries, dark cherries, black raspberries, black plum, blueberries, raspberries on the high palate and long set with cherry kirsch. Sweet tarry notes, black, rich, turned soil, anise, steep fruit tea, caramel, some milk chocolate, limestone minerals, dry crushed rocks, dry top soil, underbrush, soft leather, touch of graphite, hints of dry herbs, moist clay with amazing candied, bright, dark, red, blue florals and violets for days. The acidity is like a palate waterfall. The long finish is; delicious, gorgeous, ruby, well balanced, elegant with polish that persists nicely for minutes. (2325 views) | | | Tasted by lgermain on 4/6/2019 & rated 89 points: Final four (1658 views) | | | Tasted by ppandian on 1/27/2019 & rated 88 points: Deep red, spicy, licorice, medium weight and balanced tannins. Good expression of a California cab. (1747 views) | | | Tasted by mossreport on 3/19/2018 & rated 93 points: Popped and poured and was the star of the night. (3099 views) | | | Tasted by mats13 on 1/1/2018 & rated 92 points: Excellent, though my palate was under attack all night and I don't have specific notes. Medium body, perhaps a bit indistinct. I suspect this wine has a ways to go. (2848 views) | | | Tasted by yipen on 12/26/2017: plenty of fruit, not much tannin left, ready to drink now (2775 views) | | | Tasted by sipnwine on 11/6/2016: good stuff (5416 views) | | | Tasted by jacs55 on 8/10/2016: Eel (5554 views) | | | Tasted by CES911 on 7/21/2016 & rated 89 points: Like black ink, no layers, just a wall of cab. Good but not that interesting. But as cabs go, very nice.
The wine looks ruby colored. The legs are slow. There is no sediment in the bottle. It smells like stoniness, coffee and lead pencil. It tastes like lead pencil and vanilla. The body is medium/full. The wine has smooth texture. The wine finishes medium. The wine has low acidity. (4673 views) | | | Tasted by DRK III on 4/22/2016 & rated 88 points: Agree with previous comments that the wine is marginally thin, but not a flaw. This is not highly extracted. A more pure expression of Napa cabernet. Didn't pick up on much layering or complexity so wouldn't let it age any longer. Good, but simple. (4898 views) | | | Tasted by easttide on 2/7/2016 & rated 93 points: Very good at this stage. Finesse and class to spare. The folks that think this is thin or light should run out and buy some 2013 Caymus- you won't be disappointed with the overdone, overly sweet, over-extracted mess that it is. (5354 views) | | | Tasted by wineguy1968 on 12/12/2015 & rated 88 points: decent cab, but agree with others that it's lacking body, its a little thin. Fruit profile is nice and it's easy drinking so it will be a crowd pleaser. Drink up! (3572 views) | | | Tasted by Coupe 60 on 10/10/2015 & rated 92 points: PnP, and had with Grilled Filet Mignon. Wine is in a real good window right now, but I'd smoke em if I got em. Round and somewhat lush, Red fruit, a hint of dirt/barnyard and soft tannins. Easy drinker that tasted real good...Glad I paired it with a Filet, might not have gone as well with a ribeye (3599 views) | | | Tasted by sleepyhaus on 8/13/2015: Purchased on closeout from a grocery store, this must not have been that well stored, because there was a hint of oxidation. Otherwise you can tell it was good, but something was missing. (3736 views) | | | Only displaying the 25 most recent notes - click to see all notes for this wine... |
| By Richard Jennings
RJonWine.com (12/14/2013)
(Heitz Cellar Cabernet Sauvignon) Very dark purple red violet color; tart black currant, espresso, licorice nose; tar, tart black currant, dried berry palate with medium acidity and firm tannins; medium-plus finish 91+ points 91 points |
NOTE: Scores and reviews are the property of RJonWine.com. (manage subscription channels) |
| Heitz Cellar Producer websiteCabernet 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)Napa ValleySt. Helena |
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