CA Cabernet vs. Bordeaux and Italy
Paul's House (in Town) - (May 15, 2022)
Tasted June 5, 2022 by CWilliam with 228 views
Introduction
In 2009, I did a blind tasting (very few wines) and selected an '04 Caymus Special Selection over an '04 Leoville Las Casas (hereafter "LLC") and that shocked me given my preference for French wines and the LLC in particular. I like CA Cabernet but they are very expensive and have less acidity / structure (in general - this doesn't apply to Spring Mountain, Howell Mountain and CA Cabernet made in a classical style) than their European cousins.
Given I had a bottle of '09 Caymus Special Selection I thought it was time to retest my hypothesis that the LLC was just too young and after 8-10 years of age, the European wines would be more complete with further bottle age.
I think tasting notes for Caymus (especially the regular bottling) are the most polarizing on CT. I will say the '09 Caymus Special Selection drank well but I would not repurchase given where that wine sells today. The '05 and '09 Bordeaux (arguably the CA wine drinker's Bordeaux vintage) showed very favorably and generally were more complete wines. If we did a straight up against 9-10 year Brunello vs. CA Cabernet it would have been even more one sided against CA Caberent (at least with this tasting group).
Note wine ratings and notes are my notes and not the group's overall unless noted.
Flight 1 (10 notes)
We had someone mix the bottles up prior to tasting (and mixed up the bags and cut off foil around cork so no cheating) and tasted in sets of two blind in the order below. After making many guesses, we opened the bottles to reveal our wisdom (or lack thereof).
Wine #1 of 10
Sweet cherry, blackberry cassis and tobacco on nose & palate. Full body, medium+ tannins and medium acidity. Guessed CA Cab. 92-93 Not to my palate but well made bottle of wine. '09 Canon that followed was more complex).
Wine #2 of 10
Black in glass. Great nose - black currants, bell pepper, tobacco, mushrooms. Full body, integrated tannins, medium+ acidity and very long finish. A step up from prior wine. 93-94 range. Tied for 3rd place.
Wine #3 of 10
Very simple wine and stood out as flawed or maybe not a good wine (or too young)? Medicinal cherry, blackberry on nose / palate. Medium body, medium acidity, low tannins. Would not purchase. Finished last in tasting 89+/-
Wine #4 of 10
didn't note color. Cassis, blackberry, licorice, menthol and earth on nose. Palate more dried out than nose. medium body/tannins / acidity and long finish. I didn't put a rating on this but recall enjoying it. Did not score in top 5 in tasting. People thought it was potentially an older Brunello given pruney elements on the palate. My notes were not good on this one.
Wine #5 of 10
Lighter than previous wine (09 Peby Faugeres) with brick red color. On nose, tart cherry, strawberry and tobacco - noticeably different than prior '09 vintage Bordeaux. medium body/medium tannins / acidity and long finish. I guessed '08 Bordeaux but I knew someone was brining one so no hero status for this taster. 90-91 range. Wine tied for 3rd overall.
Wine #6 of 10
The wine that created this tasting (see tasting event for more details). Blacker in glass than all previous wines. On nose, cassis, blackberry and tobacco. On palate, fruit was very sweet & soft - this has aged well and was not oxidized. Full body (clearly a CA cab), medium tannins and low acidity (much lower than all previous wines). This was a wine that was better on its' own than with food (93+/- on own, 91+/- with food).
Figured this was my wine and I was correct. While not in top 3 of tasting, this wine impressed the French / Italian leaning tasting group.
Wine #7 of 10
Brick red color. On nose, tart cherry, black cherry, tobacco and earthy/mushroom elements. On palate, full body, medium tannins, medium acidity and very long finish (longer than all previous wines) with nice minerality. Notes were getting bad but this was my favorite wine, as it was of the group's by a substantial margin. 93-94 range. Given price paid for this in 2010 that is a fabulous value and this is aging beautifully.
Wine #8 of 10
Delicious bottle of wine. Didn't note color. Charred wood, cassis, ripe cherry and rosemary on nose. Palate had similar profile. Medium+ body, medium tannins and medium+ acidity - great structure here. My favorite of the CA wines this night. Guessed 2015+/- CA cab. 92-93 range.
Wine #9 of 10
Getting towards end. Brownish/red color - looks older. On nose, prune, dried cherry and tobacco with some nice earthy undertones. Palate flavor profile consistent with nose with high acidity, medium body and integrated tannins. Most people guessed aged Brunello and were correct. I love Brunello's but don't like them when the fruit starts to oxidize. 90-91 for me. The wine tied for #3 in the tasting.
Wine #10 of 10
Poor notes. Didn't note color. Black cherry, iron and graphite on nose / palate. medium body, medium+ acidity, medium tannins and long finish. I liked this. Clearly a super-Tuscan. 92-93 range.
Closing
Overall, a fun tasting. The wine of the night was the '05 Chateau Saint-Pierre (Saint Julien). It is still evolving and drank beautifully. Thanks to Alex at JJ Buckley who recommend this about 10 years ago. After that, tied for #2 where wines #2 (Canon-la-Gaffeliere), #5 ('08 Brane Cantenac Margaux) and #9 (Citille di Sopra Brunello '07). The St. Pierre was my WOTN and given tasting was about a month ago, I can't recall my #2 or #3.
I plan on loading up on more recent vintages of the Saint-Pierre in any event.