January 27, 2022 - fading red/purple, bit brown in color. nose- balanced fruit, earth, barnyard, touch confectioned. palate- light tannins, slightly dry, well balanced, red fruit, black tea, red fruit
January 15, 2022 - Bold blend of 60CS 40CF was unique and beautiful. Smelled of cinnamon flowers coffee strawberry compote. Fantastic mouthfeel and length with nice high-toned edge running all through the dark spicy red fruit bramble. Purchased by me in mid 90s right after winery release. Cellared conscientiously, though certainly not perfectly.
March 31, 2017 - Popped and decanted for sed. Minimal. Alive and well. Nose bright n fresh. Resolved velvety tannins. Plenty of life a here. A Napa cab with some bordeaux qualities. Heat not an issue for us. Love when a Napa cab shows well at 20+ years. We killed it at 2 hours, wonder what it would be like with a long decant. Drink or hold. Yummy!
July 8, 2015 - Not a note but just needed to add that a second bottle of this opened tonight is even fresher than the first. And while this isn't a profound wine it certainly comes close to being so. Quite outstanding for a 23 year old Napa blend, this is just delicious.
June 4, 2015 - Popped and aerated in bottle for about 3-4 hours, black cherry hue with just a hint of bricking. Upon first pour shows lovely older Napa Cab aromas of plummy fruits, old cedar shavings, crushed spices, dried herbs and leather along with a whiff of vanilla-tinged pipe tobacco. Becomes more Bordeaux like with air and swirling, the nose evolving from sweet pipe tobacco into more one of cigar box and stones. Medium-plus body, nicely concentrated at age 23. Cherry fruits, ripe currant, mint, nori wrapper, smoke and herbaceous notes along with an impression of crushed stones on the palate. Chewy tannins remain unresolved on the lengthy close.
Delicious Cabernet, seems to be peaking now but will last for many more years.
January 12, 2015 - funny enough others said drink this now, i found this to be still young / big and rich / in your face / a bit hot… maybe it is just stylistic (which style i don't like) or maybe it just needed more time… was unpleasant on days one and two, almost poured it out… then was better on night three, but still not yet great
March 29, 2014 - Wow. No one would guess that this wine is 22 years old. It has nicely balanced acidity with soft tannins and plenty of fruit. The nose is classic Cali Cab although it is only 60% cab...great mouth feel as well. This one was built to age but at or past peak.
January 26, 2014 - Loved this once. Sorry to see it like this. Time to pull the plug.
RIP
September 24, 2008 - What I love about this wine is that you can actually taste the heavy cabernet franc influence, 39% in this vintage if I remember right. Most California wineries bake the acidity right out of this grape or oak it into generic chocolateyness. But this wine still has a serious acidic spine which gives it a real edginess. There is power here but the power comes from tension at least as much as from sheer concentration. At the same time the fruit is still rich and glossy without being syrupy or over the top. Part of me wishes there were more California wines like this, but then I sort of like the fact that Viader is such a unique creature unto itself. I'll have to revisit other vintages soon.
February 4, 2006 - Deep nose, very red with chocolate covered cherry and minty tobacco notes. Surprisingly youthful - challenges my opinion of Viader as a 10-year wine. Well structured, almost too much so. Excellent Viader.