Mostly 2003 California Cabs

A group of us decided to have a look at some of the recently released 2003 California Cabs. Of course, we couldn't start without the obligatory white Burgundy, and couldn't finish without a top-notch dessert wine to go with the mousse au chocolat.

• 2000 Domaine William Fèvre Chablis Grand Cru Les Clos 93 Points

  France, Burgundy, Chablis, Chablis Grand Cru

  Pale straw yellow. Aromas of crushed chalky stone and white flowers. Intensely flavored citrus notes infused with powdered rock, with the minerality of the wine dominating the finish. A beautifully balanced delivering flavor intensity, complexity, and finesse. Pales only slightly next to the 2000 Raveneau Clos tasted in September, which delivered an even more powerful mid-palate and a longer finish.

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These reminded me of Bob Parker's recent description of the 2002 Bordeaux as not being fun to drink at the moment. Most seemed to be in a somewhat sullen, even muted state, with the exception of the Pride and possibly the Togni. Some tasters thought these wines would never come around to meriting an outstanding score, but my own opinion was that at least some of them had potential, but that they were showing their tannic, austere side at the moment. My own personal favorite ended up being the Ramey Jericho, with the Pride coming in second.

• 2003 Ramey Jericho Canyon Vineyard 91 Points

  USA, California, Napa Valley

  Dark ruby red. Very reserved, almost muted nose of cassis and finely crushed minerals. In the mouth, this was impressive right out of the bottle, with the dark cassis fruit infused with very fine-grained, almost dusty tannins. With time, this wine seemed to shut down a bit and become more sullen, more dominated by its slightly hard tannins. Good volume on the mid-palate, this was my favorite of the '03 wines early on, but fell to second or third place as the evening wore on. The next day it seemed to regain some of its expressiveness and that distinct fine granularity on the palate re-emerged. This wine will require at least five years to come around, maybe more, so evaluating at this early stage is a bit difficult. Rated 90-91 now, but could well deserve a higher score down the road.

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• 2003 Chateau St. Jean Cabernet Sauvignon Sonoma County 89 Points

  USA, California, Sonoma County

  Dark ruby red. Immediately upon opening, this bottle showed a strong note of green stemmy wood, but this seemed to fade with about two hours of decanting. Then, a restrained nose dominated by cassis. In the mouth, substantial, slightly drying tannins keep this one from being a crowd-pleaser. Reasonable palate coverage, but the wine seems to lack a bit of volume on the mid-palate and comes across as slightly simple, particularly on the finish.

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• 2003 Philip Togni Cabernet Sauvignon 87 Points

  USA, California, Napa Valley, Spring Mountain District

  Dark ruby red, this wine shows a strong green note on the nose that put off a number of the tasters. To me, this initially came across as stemmy wood and possibly under-ripe fruit, but the nose did seem to transform to more of a bell pepper aromas with time. More acidic and bracing than any of the other 2003 Cabs tasted, the mid-palate struck me as lacking sheer volume, although it could hardly be described as hollow because of the strong flavors and aromas. Difficult to judge at this stage, this wine might settle down and show a lot more in the way of complexity and character with some bottle age. 87(?+)

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• 2003 Beau Vigne Cabernet Sauvignon 90 Points

  USA, California, Napa Valley

  Nose dominated by cassis and some oak. Fine-grained, dusty tannins coat the palate and give the impression of good volume, even though the fruit is restrained, even muted. This wine seems to have the raw ingredients, but it also seems to be shut down at the moment. The finish is more impressive, this one might come around with substantial bottle age, although the slightly drying tannins are a bit worrisome.

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• 2003 Pride Mountain Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon 90 Points

  USA, California, North Coast, Napa / Sonoma

  Dark ruby red. A nose of soft ripe dark fruit, with distinct chocolate notes, I could have mistaken this for a Merlot except for the lack of a real plummy note. In the mouth the wine is round and nicely balanced, but it lacks the sheer volume and thrust of the Ramey. This wine shows only a bit more tannin than the 2002, but currently lacks the brightness and expressiveness of that wine. I would guess this wine will be at its peak in 3-5 years.

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• 2003 Robert Mondavi Winery Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley 88 Points

  USA, California, Napa Valley

  Faint green note seems woody and stemmy to me. Middling volume on the mid-palate, with some substantial tannins that come across as slightly austere, this wine lacks the core of sweet ripe fruit to balance these. Slightly generic in its presentation, this certainly needs at least five years to balance out, although I would not hold out a great deal of hope that it will ever be an outstanding wine. Still, could be a good QPR if people are willing to cellar it.

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The 2003 and 2002 seemed to fit into the same mold, even if the 2002 was much more lively and fuller at the moment. The 2001 only showed its links to the 2002 and 2003 with substantial time in the glass, however, since it seems very much dominated by some powerful tannins and a firm structure at the moment. The '01 at least strikes me as a vin de garde, while the 2002 is the most accessible at the moment.

• 2003 Pride Mountain Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon 90 Points

  USA, California, North Coast, Napa / Sonoma

  Tasted as part of a vertical of the Pride Cabernet Sauvignon, 2001-2003. Notes consistent with the earlier tasting, although tasters agreed that these 2003 Cabs showed better when paired with the main course (roast pork). Similar in style to the 2002, but currently showing a bit less expressiveness and fruit than that wine.

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• 2002 Pride Mountain Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon 91 Points

  USA, California, Napa Valley

  Dark ruby red. Telltale Pride nose of chocolate intermixed with cassis. Unlike the last bottle I drank, this wine showed more tannic structure and volume than I recalled. Lively, chocolatey flavors coat the mid-palate, of the trio 2001-2002-2003, this is certainly the most ready to drink. Why did I sell my 2002 Pride Cabs off? (;boot kicking rear end;)

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• 2001 Pride Mountain Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon 92 Points

  USA, California, Napa Valley

  Dark ruby red. Muted nose of pure cassis, with the signature Pride Cab notes of chocolate showing up with time in the glass (and coaxing). In the mouth, this wine is surprisingly tannic, with a very firm spine, much more pronounced than I remembered from an earlier tasting. Finally recognizable as a Pride Cab when tasted against the 2002 and 2003, still this wine has much more power and thrust on the mid-palate than either of these wines. The palate expression was a bit muted and closed initially, but with time in the glass, the ripe, intensely flavored core of fruit emerged and outshone the 2002 and 2003. I can't really imagine drinking this wine at this stage, however--it needs a good five years to come around, and probably will last considerably longer. 92-93

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How did the Pride Merlot end up with the Suduiraut? Well, I created the wrong number of flights and I am worried I wil lose my changes if I go back. The Merlot Vintner's Select really is a striking wine, but it has the minerality and acidity to improve with age. The Suduiraut is surprising

• 2001 Pride Mountain Vineyards Merlot Vintner Select Mountain Top Vineyard 94 Points

  USA, California, Sonoma County

  Dark ruby red, almost black. Aromas of cherry liqueur, black and red raspberries, strawberries infused with a distinct mineral note. Flavors of cherry liqueur and extremely ripe raspberries dominate the attack on the palate, but this gives way to a striking minerality and acidity on the long finish. I can't recall a wine quite like this, with the combination of a sweet, ultra-ripe attack followed by bracing minerality and laser-like acidity on the finish, unless maybe in the 2003 Pegau CdP Reservee I have tasted. Beautifully delineated and extremely bright on the palate, this is a striking wine that should age well. Impressive!

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• 2001 Château Suduiraut 95 Points

  France, Bordeaux, Sauternais, Sauternes

  Very pale straw yellow. Explosive and yet highly nuanced aromas of peach, citrus, white flowers, honey, and beautifully balanced botrytis. In the mouth, even more impressive, with viscous, palate coating peach and apricot flavors on the attack followed by a finish in which the sharply defined flavors and minerality seem to actually intensify rather than fade away. A very impressive combination of power, finesse, and sheer mouthfeel. Wow!

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Group scores for the 2003 Cabs:
Pride: 89.17
St. Jean: 88.67
Ramey: 86.83
Beau Vigne: 86.83
Mondavi: 86.5
Togni: 85.17