Started on Friday evening by pitting two well-established producers against each other. Heitz Cellars from Napa Valley and Clos Mogador from Priorat. Both have today exactly the same price on Systembolaget (899 SEK), current vintage Heitz 2016 (soon 2017) Clos Mogador 2020. Continued on Saturday evening to see how the wines developed.
Heitz Cellars Cabernet Sauvignon 2014 100% Cabernet Sauvignon 8 months in neutral oak tanks, 2 years in 50% new and 50% used French oak barrels, followed by 18 months in bottle.
Clos Mogador Gratallops 2017 45% Garnatxa, 29% Carinyena, 16% Syrah, 10% Cabernet Sauvignon. 18 months in 300 liter barrels and 2,000 liter barrels. Both were dubble decanted and had approx. 1 hour in a decanter.
Heitz One of the classic producers in Napa, Joe Heitz started in 1961. Participated in the legendary "Judgement of Paris 1976" with their prestige wine Martha's Vineyard vintage 1970. Have drunk several vintages of Heitz and know that it is not a wine to stress about. Friday gave about what I thought, restrained, spreads a little and the fruit didn’t perform as you would like. But on Saturday this wine shows itself from a more positive side, more homogeneous, good structure, classic Cab fruit, black currants, tobacco, violet and cigar box. This is a more elegant variant of the Cab from Napa. Is it worth its price today? I don't think so, when I bought vintage 2014 the price was around SEK 600 - 700. No stress for those of you who have 2014 in the cellar, give it time if you intend to open it in the near future.
Clos Mogador René Barbier started in 1979 and his first wine was Clos Mogador, which is also the estate's prestige wine. Just like Heitz, Clos Mogador needs time in the cellar to find its harmony. I drank the 2006 vintage at the beginning of the summer, which was stunning. Friday the wine was also scattered at first, the alcohol hits too much (15.5%), but after about 2 hours there is a significant difference. What stands out is that tannins and acidity are more noticeable compared to Heitz, incredibly fine tannins. Saturday will also be a step in the right direction, better harmony now, like Heitz, most things fall into place. Dark berries with a nice structure but there is residual sweetness that takes up a little too much space, and the alcohol sticks a little too much for my taste. This wine needs at least 5 years before everything is in place, I think 😊. Is it worth its price today? not today, but if it gets the development that Clos Mogador usually gets with a little age, then the answer is Yes, time will tell.
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Very much old school in balance and tone - only started opening after an hour or so open, and still was primarily savory and cool, not at all modern oak bomb napa cab.
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Decanted for about two hours. This wine opened up and showed beautifully. Clearly defined CA Cab notes, all in balance, with fruit showing strongly. This is drinking at its peak. Very enjoyable.
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Red fruit more than black fruit flavors. Balanced acidity and tannins. Medium weight. No hot, fruit bomb here. Simple without a ton of complexity or long finishes but enjoyable to drink with and without food.
Like on CTer said, shows even better on the second day after opening as long as you don’t mind a touch of oxidation.
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Very good! Wonderful balance of Cali fruit, with the elegance one expects from Heitz. Medium weight. Some spice, blueberry, very pure. Long refined, straightforward. Drinking now and will last a decade at least.
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Drank over 2 nights. Better on night 2. Dark red color. On nose, dark cherry, rubber (went away on night 2), bell pepper (especially with air and on night 2) and tobacco. Palate consistent with nose with medium body, medium+ tannins, low acidity and long finish. 89+/- on night 1, 91+ on night 2.
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Refrained style for Napa cab. Classic and very well balanced. Fruit and subtle tertiary flavors are starting to show. Love that this is not overly oaked.
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Pnp. Old world style. Reserved fruit. Low tannin. Acidity for the long haul. Good finish. Smooth and Enjoyable though pretty plain jane for a $60 bottle.
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Classic old world style Napa cab. Best after two hour decant. Dark fruits, pencil shavings, sage and tobacco. Medium mouthfeel, structured and balanced. Generous, lingering finish. Many years of life ahead.
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Wonderful stuff. Nose on brambly fruit and crimson. Fresh red fruit on the palate, with chocolate and crushed baked spices. Married well with the oak. All ready to go. Give it some air, but its ready.
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Drinking really nicely at the moment. Very typical California cab but I always find Heitz special. Really expressive flavour profile. Lots of cedar, tabacco and hints of flowers and vanilla. Looking forward to trying again in a few years.
91+
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Old school style of Napa Cab. Ugh, I wish they were all still like this!
Blackberries, black raspberries, wild berries, mint, eucalyptus, leather, cigar box, black pepper. Body is medium +, tannins are pretty soft 6 years on. Acidity is still there. I think this wine is ready to drink; but it could still age a little longer.
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We played a round of golf at my club on a beautiful NJ morning went to have lunch - everyone was getting a glass of wine so we decided lets just get a bottle and this was what was suggested. Since I drank the older sibling last night I was happy to go along with the suggestion. I would say that the older sibling was better because it was decanted at it sat for some time while this was just a straight pop and pour. The nose was dark berries, the palate was dark berries, leather and coffee and the finish was moderate. It was a nice glass of wine to accompany my turkey burger.
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Original review on opening (88): Medium bodied, flat quick finish. Not your typical cab for sure. Decent acidity. Not a lot of tannins. Smooth. A bit simple. Would likely pair well with lots of foods.
4.5 hours later after decanting (91+): Ok, after lots of air, this has opened up quite a bit and has become very enjoyable. It is still an unusual CA cab, but I like it. It reminds me of an Etna Rosso. Nice very fine tannins, nice acidity. Red fruit dominant. A little astringent (almost a green note) on the finish (back of mouth), but I wonder if that might go away with time. No blackberries or heavy oak like sometimes found in CA cabs. This is delightful. I would be happy to have more of this.
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PNP with dinner at the lake. This is a medium bodied wine that hits a touch hollow in the mid palate. Even as it gained in glass the substance did not really arrive. Well made cab displaying blackberry, blue fruit notes and a leather, capsicum and herbs. Just lacking anything more than a general varietally correct presence.
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The wine looks violet colored. There is no sediment in the bottle. The body is medium. The wine has smooth texture. The wine finishes short. The wine has medium acidity.
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We tried this with another friend who had the bought the same bottle...so we did a virtual tasting. This 2014 has a lot more "shoulders," something I have seen in other California wines during the droughts.
I much prefer the 2012 and 2013 Heitz cabs at a similar age. Will be storing the two other 2014s I got for a few years to see if they soften a bit.
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Heitz is always consistently good. This bottle is no exception. Beautiful notes of dominant black berries with some blue and red fruit in the mix. Just enough tannins and acids to compliment the fruit, keeping that stream flowed and saturated gently along the entire intriguingly palate. While I had various vintages of the Martha's vineyard, I felt less of a slave to the wine when drinking these lesser Napa bottlings. Just popped and poured into any glass and enjoyed over 3 hours. No needs of expensive tools to "transform" an already great wine.
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Very fine wine for Heitz entry level with a nice nose dominated by blueberry, violet, candied fruit, and caramel. Body is less forward than the vibrant nose with medium minus weight but good acidity and well balanced medium minus finish. The wine is fresh and with 2 hours of time is drinking well. Great starting point to get into their Single vineyard offerings and I would have this on a night regularly.
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Complex aromas of black pepper, blackberries, chocolate, old leather, jasmine, in ever shifting order, with a light touch of oak. Sweet pure and clear fruit on the palate with fragrant acids, a lovely meld of tannin and acid moving into an aromatic back note, long singing finsh. Excellent balance and evolution from front to back. Perfect with mapo dofu.
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Winespecials Wine Evening (Restaurant Holz und Feuer, Kirchheim, Germany): Glass: Gabriel Universal Popped and poured. Clear, deep purple color. Clean, youthful nose with lots of kitschy, artificial cherry notes. On the palate round and soft, silky texture, dense, salty, but again with lots of artificial, kitschy fruit. Seems “made”. Certainly, too young, but will it get much better? 88-89
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Its a blend across the vineyards. THe best barrels go into the single vineyards. So its a barrel selection as well. Starts as a blend between trailside and Martha's and then the other seven vineyards come it.
Smells like vanilla on the nose. Maybe that is just the glass. Lots and lots of red fruit. 2011 Napa Valley is apparently all Martha's. So buy that if you find it. Not as expressive as the other two but still good stuff.
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This is a Pinot lover's Cabernet. It is elegant, a bit spicy, silky smooth, medium bodied and has a milder aroma but it is wonderful and makes you wish it was stronger. I like a little softer Cab and this really fits my palate. Delicious and would be great with grilled salmon or by itself as I had it. Cheers.
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Melded aromas of mocha, dark red berries, mint, a soft brambly note. Smooth spread of rich dry fruit on the palate, integrated tannins, rich aromatic back note, gentle acids which start to sparkle on the sweet fruit-driven finish. Has a lovely balance and evolution on the palate that belies its 14.5% alcohol. Sprightly, not profound.
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An older world style. Lighter and more elegant than most naps cab, 14.5% alcohol. On the nose - black cherries, mint, baking spices, and an overall herbal and woody quality. Medium tannins. Not your typical Napa cab - more versatile, but also depends on what you were looking for. A little too medium bodied and elegant for our ribeye.
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Rated 93 points by JS. Such a wonderful, consistent entry-level cab that I've been enjoying for over 25 years. I generally prefer bottle aging this wine for a minimum of eight years, but once in a while I have to break my own rules. Decanted for two hours before pouring with the serving temperature around 65 degrees. Aromas of blackberry, toasted bread and violets. Medium-full mouthfeel with flavors of Bing cherry, plum, dark chocolate, boysenberry, coffee and caramel. The texture was velvety and silky smooth and the balance between alcohol and tannins was approaching resolution. More old style than most Cali Cabs with earthy nuances. I am reminded that time is this wine's best friend. Best 2021 or after.
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Decanted to let breathe 90 mins then poured through venturi. Probably needed more time but it helped slightly. Closed and one dimensional so far. leather. Muted nose. Will probably improve in bottle next year. Better wines for the $55 (groth! Is my current favorite).
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Heitz Dinner w/the winemaker (Harry's NYC): For a base Napa cab this is quite well done. Very approachable and feels like drinking window prob a bit shorter on this (although then we tried the 1985 which was still going strong). Blend across all of the vineyards. There's a bit of extra fruit going right at the end that detracts a touch, but overall, pretty decent and good for price point.
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12/16/2023 - SirJ Likes this wine: 92 Points
Started on Friday evening by pitting two well-established producers against each other. Heitz Cellars from Napa Valley and Clos Mogador from Priorat. Both have today exactly the same price on Systembolaget (899 SEK), current vintage Heitz 2016 (soon 2017) Clos Mogador 2020. Continued on Saturday evening to see how the wines developed.
Heitz Cellars Cabernet Sauvignon 2014
100% Cabernet Sauvignon
8 months in neutral oak tanks, 2 years in 50% new and 50% used French oak barrels, followed by 18 months in bottle.
Clos Mogador Gratallops 2017
45% Garnatxa, 29% Carinyena, 16% Syrah, 10% Cabernet Sauvignon.
18 months in 300 liter barrels and 2,000 liter barrels.
Both were dubble decanted and had approx. 1 hour in a decanter.
Heitz
One of the classic producers in Napa, Joe Heitz started in 1961. Participated in the legendary "Judgement of Paris 1976" with their prestige wine Martha's Vineyard vintage 1970.
Have drunk several vintages of Heitz and know that it is not a wine to stress about. Friday gave about what I thought, restrained, spreads a little and the fruit didn’t perform as you would like. But on Saturday this wine shows itself from a more positive side, more homogeneous, good structure, classic Cab fruit, black currants, tobacco, violet and cigar box. This is a more elegant variant of the Cab from Napa.
Is it worth its price today? I don't think so, when I bought vintage 2014 the price was around SEK 600 - 700. No stress for those of you who have 2014 in the cellar, give it time if you intend to open it in the near future.
Clos Mogador
René Barbier started in 1979 and his first wine was Clos Mogador, which is also the estate's prestige wine. Just like Heitz, Clos Mogador needs time in the cellar to find its harmony. I drank the 2006 vintage at the beginning of the summer, which was stunning.
Friday the wine was also scattered at first, the alcohol hits too much (15.5%), but after about 2 hours there is a significant difference. What stands out is that tannins and acidity are more noticeable compared to Heitz, incredibly fine tannins. Saturday will also be a step in the right direction, better harmony now, like Heitz, most things fall into place. Dark berries with a nice structure but there is residual sweetness that takes up a little too much space, and the alcohol sticks a little too much for my taste. This wine needs at least 5 years before everything is in place, I think 😊.
Is it worth its price today? not today, but if it gets the development that Clos Mogador usually gets with a little age, then the answer is Yes, time will tell.
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8/12/2023 - Bob23 Likes this wine: 91 Points
Very much old school in balance and tone - only started opening after an hour or so open, and still was primarily savory and cool, not at all modern oak bomb napa cab.
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6/20/2023 - North Willis Likes this wine: 92 Points
Decanted for about two hours. This wine opened up and showed beautifully. Clearly defined CA Cab notes, all in balance, with fruit showing strongly. This is drinking at its peak. Very enjoyable.
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4/16/2023 - Torchy wrote: 88 Points
Powerful, yet not overly bold and jammy. Firm structure, with dark fruits, and hints of chocolate and smoke.
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4/8/2023 - linkswinelover6549 Likes this wine: 91 Points
Beautiful cab. Perfect now
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2/7/2023 - SWHighlander Likes this wine: 93 Points
Red fruit more than black fruit flavors. Balanced acidity and tannins. Medium weight. No hot, fruit bomb here. Simple without a ton of complexity or long finishes but enjoyable to drink with and without food.
Like on CTer said, shows even better on the second day after opening as long as you don’t mind a touch of oxidation.
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1/25/2023 - Philip67 Likes this wine: 93 Points
Very good! Wonderful balance of Cali fruit, with the elegance one expects from Heitz. Medium weight. Some spice, blueberry, very pure. Long refined, straightforward. Drinking now and will last a decade at least.
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11/2/2022 - schnurbie Likes this wine: 91 Points
Very nice drinking. Really opened up after a one hour decant
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5/29/2022 - CWilliam wrote: 90 Points
Drank over 2 nights. Better on night 2. Dark red color. On nose, dark cherry, rubber (went away on night 2), bell pepper (especially with air and on night 2) and tobacco. Palate consistent with nose with medium body, medium+ tannins, low acidity and long finish. 89+/- on night 1, 91+ on night 2.
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5/28/2022 - ewats9 Likes this wine:
Decanted 1 hour. Needed more time to decant. Ideally lay down a few more years before opening.
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1/1/2022 - Chvnny Likes this wine: 91 Points
Refrained style for Napa cab. Classic and very well balanced. Fruit and subtle tertiary flavors are starting to show. Love that this is not overly oaked.
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9/22/2021 - Dmax808 wrote: 91 Points
I usually don't drink Cali cabs but this was actually nicely balanced. Though QPR not so good so -1pt.
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8/25/2021 - Clark W Griswold Likes this wine: 89 Points
Pnp. Old world style. Reserved fruit. Low tannin. Acidity for the long haul. Good finish. Smooth and Enjoyable though pretty plain jane for a $60 bottle.
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7/10/2021 - Tahlequahdave1972 Likes this wine: 91 Points
Classic old world style Napa cab. Best after two hour decant. Dark fruits, pencil shavings, sage and tobacco. Medium mouthfeel, structured and balanced. Generous, lingering finish. Many years of life ahead.
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3/14/2021 - VinoPKM wrote: 90 Points
Decent, but nothing to write home about. Avg. Old School Napa Cab. Expected more.
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3/13/2021 - Millertime!!! wrote:
One of my favorite $60 Cabs. 2014 Comparable to Phelps.
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1/13/2021 - BergerKing Likes this wine: 92 Points
Wonderful stuff. Nose on brambly fruit and crimson. Fresh red fruit on the palate, with chocolate and crushed baked spices. Married well with the oak. All ready to go. Give it some air, but its ready.
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11/13/2020 - bordeaux456 Likes this wine: 91 Points
Drinking really nicely at the moment. Very typical California cab but I always find Heitz special. Really expressive flavour profile. Lots of cedar, tabacco and hints of flowers and vanilla. Looking forward to trying again in a few years.
91+
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10/30/2020 - AlphaMikeFoxtrot Likes this wine: 90 Points
Old school style of Napa Cab. Ugh, I wish they were all still like this!
Blackberries, black raspberries, wild berries, mint, eucalyptus, leather, cigar box, black pepper. Body is medium +, tannins are pretty soft 6 years on. Acidity is still there. I think this wine is ready to drink; but it could still age a little longer.
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9/23/2020 - markcic Likes this wine: 89 Points
We played a round of golf at my club on a beautiful NJ morning went to have lunch - everyone was getting a glass of wine so we decided lets just get a bottle and this was what was suggested. Since I drank the older sibling last night I was happy to go along with the suggestion. I would say that the older sibling was better because it was decanted at it sat for some time while this was just a straight pop and pour. The nose was dark berries, the palate was dark berries, leather and coffee and the finish was moderate. It was a nice glass of wine to accompany my turkey burger.
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9/16/2020 - trumpet60201 wrote: 91 Points
Original review on opening (88): Medium bodied, flat quick finish. Not your typical cab for sure. Decent acidity. Not a lot of tannins. Smooth. A bit simple. Would likely pair well with lots of foods.
4.5 hours later after decanting (91+): Ok, after lots of air, this has opened up quite a bit and has become very enjoyable. It is still an unusual CA cab, but I like it. It reminds me of an Etna Rosso. Nice very fine tannins, nice acidity. Red fruit dominant. A little astringent (almost a green note) on the finish (back of mouth), but I wonder if that might go away with time. No blackberries or heavy oak like sometimes found in CA cabs. This is delightful. I would be happy to have more of this.
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9/6/2020 - RockinCabs wrote: 88 Points
PNP with dinner at the lake. This is a medium bodied wine that hits a touch hollow in the mid palate. Even as it gained in glass the substance did not really arrive. Well made cab displaying blackberry, blue fruit notes and a leather, capsicum and herbs. Just lacking anything more than a general varietally correct presence.
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7/19/2020 - Old Lyme wrote:
Youn visit COVID era
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7/6/2020 - Yourmajesty wrote: 90 Points
The wine looks violet colored. There is no sediment in the bottle. The body is medium. The wine has smooth texture. The wine finishes short. The wine has medium acidity.
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6/18/2020 - Foggy Pinot wrote:
We tried this with another friend who had the bought the same bottle...so we did a virtual tasting. This 2014 has a lot more "shoulders," something I have seen in other California wines during the droughts.
I much prefer the 2012 and 2013 Heitz cabs at a similar age. Will be storing the two other 2014s I got for a few years to see if they soften a bit.
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6/12/2020 - NathanT wrote: 93 Points
Heitz is always consistently good. This bottle is no exception. Beautiful notes of dominant black berries with some blue and red fruit in the mix. Just enough tannins and acids to compliment the fruit, keeping that stream flowed and saturated gently along the entire intriguingly palate. While I had various vintages of the Martha's vineyard, I felt less of a slave to the wine when drinking these lesser Napa bottlings. Just popped and poured into any glass and enjoyed over 3 hours. No needs of expensive tools to "transform" an already great wine.
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4/21/2020 - mchern02 wrote: 91 Points
Two hour decant
Very fine wine for Heitz entry level with a nice nose dominated by blueberry, violet, candied fruit, and caramel. Body is less forward than the vibrant nose with medium minus weight but good acidity and well balanced medium minus finish. The wine is fresh and with 2 hours of time is drinking well. Great starting point to get into their Single vineyard offerings and I would have this on a night regularly.
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3/23/2020 - wgmccallum Likes this wine: 93 Points
Complex aromas of black pepper, blackberries, chocolate, old leather, jasmine, in ever shifting order, with a light touch of oak. Sweet pure and clear fruit on the palate with fragrant acids, a lovely meld of tannin and acid moving into an aromatic back note, long singing finsh. Excellent balance and evolution from front to back. Perfect with mapo dofu.
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3/13/2020 - NoTrollingerPlease wrote: 88 Points
Winespecials Wine Evening (Restaurant Holz und Feuer, Kirchheim, Germany): Glass: Gabriel Universal
Popped and poured. Clear, deep purple color. Clean, youthful nose with lots of kitschy, artificial cherry notes.
On the palate round and soft, silky texture, dense, salty, but again with lots of artificial, kitschy fruit. Seems “made”. Certainly, too young, but will it get much better? 88-89
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2/21/2020 - WizardNeedsFood wrote: 88 Points
Enjoyed at Lakehouse. Mellow, medium throttle cab. Vanilla, red fruit. A lot of acidity - best with food. Very linear. Light structure. No finish.
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2/9/2020 - magyarsvensk Likes this wine: 90 Points
Foresty berry bouquet. Clean Cab flavors with citrus. It’s easygoing but lingers long.
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1/29/2020 - Ben Christiansen wrote:
Its a blend across the vineyards. THe best barrels go into the single vineyards. So its a barrel selection as well. Starts as a blend between trailside and Martha's and then the other seven vineyards come it.
Smells like vanilla on the nose. Maybe that is just the glass. Lots and lots of red fruit. 2011 Napa Valley is apparently all Martha's. So buy that if you find it. Not as expressive as the other two but still good stuff.
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1/12/2020 - zylmanj Likes this wine: 94 Points
This is a Pinot lover's Cabernet. It is elegant, a bit spicy, silky smooth, medium bodied and has a milder aroma but it is wonderful and makes you wish it was stronger. I like a little softer Cab and this really fits my palate. Delicious and would be great with grilled salmon or by itself as I had it. Cheers.
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1/11/2020 - Back that glass up Likes this wine: 90 Points
Great pairing wine. Dry, strong tannins. Complex, nice finish. Probably wouldn't drink on its own.
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12/13/2019 - wgmccallum wrote: 91 Points
Melded aromas of mocha, dark red berries, mint, a soft brambly note. Smooth spread of rich dry fruit on the palate, integrated tannins, rich aromatic back note, gentle acids which start to sparkle on the sweet fruit-driven finish. Has a lovely balance and evolution on the palate that belies its 14.5% alcohol. Sprightly, not profound.
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10/17/2019 - ChristyLeighNY wrote:
An older world style. Lighter and more elegant than most naps cab, 14.5% alcohol. On the nose - black cherries, mint, baking spices, and an overall herbal and woody quality. Medium tannins. Not your typical Napa cab - more versatile, but also depends on what you were looking for. A little too medium bodied and elegant for our ribeye.
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10/2/2019 - ralaspech wrote: 88 Points
Nice Napa cabernet aroma. Tastes like cherry. Mid palate was somewhat thin.
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8/6/2019 - Tahlequahdave1972 Likes this wine: 93 Points
Rated 93 points by JS. Such a wonderful, consistent entry-level cab that I've been enjoying for over 25 years. I generally prefer bottle aging this wine for a minimum of eight years, but once in a while I have to break my own rules. Decanted for two hours before pouring with the serving temperature around 65 degrees. Aromas of blackberry, toasted bread and violets. Medium-full mouthfeel with flavors of Bing cherry, plum, dark chocolate, boysenberry, coffee and caramel. The texture was velvety and silky smooth and the balance between alcohol and tannins was approaching resolution. More old style than most Cali Cabs with earthy nuances. I am reminded that time is this wine's best friend. Best 2021 or after.
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7/31/2019 - mats13 wrote: 92 Points
Excellent qpr for a Napa Cab, and what I imagine would be a good, safe steakhouse kind of purchase. Solid generic offering.
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7/17/2019 - Ben Christiansen wrote:
Straight ahead classic cabernet
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6/7/2019 - chriskfla wrote: 89 Points
Decanted to let breathe 90 mins then poured through venturi. Probably needed more time but it helped slightly. Closed and one dimensional so far. leather. Muted nose. Will probably improve in bottle next year. Better wines for the $55 (groth! Is my current favorite).
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5/25/2019 - Scar510 wrote: 85 Points
Seattle. Pregame heitz 2014. Ok, kinda bitey. Wasn’t very good. 3.5 stars.
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5/19/2019 - Grapetomeetyou wrote: 88 Points
Very delicate, weak
Not typical Napa
Like Merlot
Fruit strawberry
Berry
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4/8/2019 - apg23 Likes this wine: 90 Points
This is good wine for the price. A bit of pepper and spice.
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3/13/2019 - MC2 Wines wrote:
Heitz Dinner w/the winemaker (Harry's NYC): For a base Napa cab this is quite well done. Very approachable and feels like drinking window prob a bit shorter on this (although then we tried the 1985 which was still going strong). Blend across all of the vineyards. There's a bit of extra fruit going right at the end that detracts a touch, but overall, pretty decent and good for price point.
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