Decanted for 30 minutes and paired with NY strips. Consistent with my note from 9/2012 except tannins are completely resolved now. "On palate, cassis, dark chocolate, black licorice & black cherry primarily - medium+ body, with great acid / fruit / tannin balance. Went great with grilled skirt steaks. Near or at peak and CT drinking guide (by end of 2018) is pretty accurate if stored correctly"
Very dark color and no signs of oxidation. This was very enjoyable and I don't know why the last bottle I had in 7/2014 was off.
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Time has made this wine more reticent and soft, the tannins are largely resolved, nice nose, some minerality, the fruit is morphing into more secondary flavors. It lacks the verve that it showed when younger, but exhibits greater complexity
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A big cab for Napa cab lovers. Still really primary. Full bodied, low acid, moderate tannins. Big black fruits, cassis, vanilla some earth and a nice finish. Not my style, but well made.
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Time has mellowed and balanced the wine. That said, it just seems a muted, better-balanced and smoother version of what it once was. The flavor profile is largely unchanged
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Not as good as my note from last Summer (enjoyed with grilled steaks on the 4th of July). Did not take notes but wine was a little off (too tannic relative to the fruit?). 91+
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Big mountain black fruit, with a touch of alcohol coming through. Some cassis and eucalyptus with Oak and hints of spice. Relatively smooth, but the tannins still have a few chunky elements to them. Not as seamless as you'd hope and with the alcohol it loses a couple points.
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Has softened considerably from where it was a couple/few years ago. It clearly has entered its drinking window. I dont really get the sense more time will yield development of tertiary flavors
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I had kind of given up on this wine but decided to try it again. A very nice bottle. The wine opened fully in 30 minutes. Blackberries and black cherries, some eucalyptus, smooth, sweet Oak, long finish, but just a tad too much heat.
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Continues to drink very well - has improved in my opinion since my last tasting a year ago. Dark red color with a slight meniscus - looks younger than an '04. On nose, black cherry, cassis, vanilla. On palate, cassis, dark chocolate, black licorice & black cherry primarily - medium+ body, with great acid / fruit / tannin balance. Went great with grilled skirt steaks. Near or at peak and CT drinking guide (by end of 2018) is pretty accurate if stored correctly. 93+
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This bottle is really coming into its element. Required about 30 minutes of decanting (mostly for the sediment). Cork popped to a dirty, sediment filled neck and shoulder was with sediment equally all around. DARK red pour into decanter. Actually rather aromatic when being decanted. I think this bottle was probably a little less intense than some of the ones before, but that's not necessarily a bad thing considering that this was enjoyed with some sushi and I was actually rather hoping that it had started to mellow a bit. Honestly, the reason why this one was probably a little more mellow was because it DIDN'T sit for an hour. The blackberry pie, leather and vanilla were certainly there but not what I remember from the others past. Either way I think it's time to start drinking this one, but I still agree that the end date on this one is 2018 no matter how good you cellar it.
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Marginally better than last bottle but still well short of where it should be. The fruit is either still hidden or has fallen off significantly since the wine's youth. I'm not presuming the latter situation. While not a rough wine, the tannins are still pretty meaty and unyielding. There is simply little charm to this wine while not really being a "bad" wine. Nonetheless, down the drain goes the second half of the bottle.
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Wine was actually opened the day before with one glass poured out for the wife, recorked, and left on the bar until the next night. No comment on that glass. On 4/10, this one was rocking. Nose of Howell Mountain fruit with a slight aroma of vanilla and very dark, dark blackberry. Hint of floral. The palate was velvety blackberry pie with a vanilla pie crust! It wasn't quite as thick or full bodied as I thought it would be, but that kind of changed in the middle. Dark, dark chocolate with blackberry and figs. Finished velvety, yet with a very fine gritty tannin...and some sediment on the bottom of the glass. Sediment all around the neck of the bottle actually. This one was good and I actually think that by 2014/15 it will be right at the height/peak of drinking. Wife commented that glass on day 1 was a little shrewd and a little too oaked. I didn't get that with the last bottle - it seemed ready to go with minimal "prep time."
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Really can't figure this one out. The nose, oh it is absolutely a beaut. Then it is TIGHT, and I don't mean "give it a couple hours" tight. So, you give it a day, thinking "wow, it will sing tomorrow once it opens," and then it just isn't there 24 hours later, having lost the tannins, its amazing nose (it is simply just nice at this point). If blind, I would think this has a lot of cab franc in it, but in reading, there's none there, or at least not according to what I see. It certainly is nice, but you just get the initial notes and get so hopeful about the potential, only to not get delivered.
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This seems to be in its drinking window. The previously aggressive tannins have come into better balance...medium to full bodied. This bottle seemed to lack a bit of the inner mouth energy of the previous two bottles...it may have been my palate on that day, or bottle variation. Still, a nice wine 91-92
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Terrific!!! Big Blue Howell cab... great but still not at peak. Maybe 1-2 years it's AGAIG. Decanted 1 hr. The wine looks Purple colored. The legs are Slow.
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Nice wine. Uncorked to a black stain with about 2mm of sediment. Nose out of the bottle was blueberry pie and inky spice! The wine was decanted due to the corked sediment. Glad we did. This was basically served as a pop and pour. This poured BLACK into the glass. The nose was all aged blueberry and blackberry. Nice aged nose with a black "wild vanilla." The wine started to show some mildly earthy characteristics in the middle although this is where the inky characteristics really showed up to make up for it and really balanced it well. There was grit, but it was refined. The finish was dense, deep, complex, and SPICY. Went well with the steak and italian herbed topping with roasted butternut squash. This wine is FULL BODIED, and finished as a dark, inky full bodied offering. I am thoroughly pleased with this wine, and I'd truly like to own more. You can pretty much drink this wine now, as it's really quite amazing that it was showing so much complexity, balance and integration with less than 10-15 minutes of decanting. Cellar another 5 years if you must.
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One of 16 Howell Mtn Vintners at the Fort Worth Club on 11/8/12 with the HMGA, sampling AVA wines. A very nice wine. Compared in series to the 94 and 08 Howell Mtn, you can tell that this one is really starting to get into that perfect drinking window, but i think that this bottle was still a bit restrained and was one of the first samples out of a newly popped bottle. The QPR is....well, maybe a bit off and perhaps the reason why the wine was rated 93. A dark, luscious pour into the glass. I appear to like a Howell Mtn wine with some complex aromatics, because this one had some earth, spice, blackberry, hawthorne with maybe some kind of a honeysuckle flower or something along these lines. This was an intense wine from start to finish, with some blackberry pie and pie spice, black licorice, fig, all up front, settling to a mid-body that showed fantastic integration. Oak is still there in the finish, but did not dominate. The finish was dark, actually not as spicy as most of the others there that night. Tannin was there, but was starting to mellow. I think this wine is at the top of the drinking window and is ready to go NOW! If you have it, start drinking on it because this one showed very well tonight.
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Recent CT notes made me nervous so I sampled another bottle - decanted for 1.5 hours before having with grilled pork chops. No degredation in color. Black cherry, blackberry, dark chocolate, tobacco on nose & palate. Secondary characteristics starting to appear. it still has some grippy tannins and was better with food than without. 92+ Will drink 1 bottle per year over the next 3 years but this should hold for a while. On a + note, the alchohol which I noticed 2 years ago did not stand out.
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Decanted this one for 4+ hours. Very dark purple on the glass; getting blackberries, creme de cassis, and a hint of smokiness on the nose. Fruit forward flavours of black fruits, cassis, licorice and some espresso on the palate complemented with the dusty tannins. Light-medium body and short finish -- feels like this lost something from the last time I tasted this. Paired with a bleu-cheese and bacon burger. Will try again in a year or two. 89-90.
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Sampled 8/24/12. The wine's color is strong, and so is the wine itself, but in a bad way. This wine seems to be getting worse, not better as it evolves. Although there are some bright notes of ripe black and red fruits that appear briefly, the wine has too many astringent notes and bite, too much Oak and the alcohol pops up with brutish fashion at moments. We can only hope this wine is just going through an awkward stage but even after letting breath for 4 hours it was not better. Vin-vacing it and coming back to it the next day did not help either. Down the sink the remainder went.
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Has all the makings of something outstanding, then just never materializes. Opened and gave two hours in a wide decanter, but decided very early on that only half would be day one, which was pretty tannic. Food (a nicely seasoned steak) balanced it better but it was still a big boy. Day two calmed it some, knocking down the tannin level to about what you'd hope for, but it didn't bring the quality wine that seemed to be behind the tannins, which makes me start to wonder if this has the potential to come around or if it is just something that isn't bad for the price.
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Deep purple in color, explosive blue and black fruit, cocoa, vanilla, and a hint of toasty oak on the nose. In the mouth, the velvety texture leads you into a big tannic cabernet. More blackberry, cocoa, and a touch of leather with a long finish. Nice wine.
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Chocolate covered espresso beans, blueberry, plum, cassis. Quite concentrated and very torrefacted; well made but hard to get excited about. Pretty good.
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Now we're talking. Third bottle in the last year and this is the best one yet. Decanted for about an hour. The wine is really improving but I think will still benefit from some time in the cellar as well as time to breathe.
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Big bad Napa Cab. Deep purple, opaque in color. Big plum and black berry flavors with cedar, oak, spice, hint of vanilla and leather flow from the glass and coat the palate for up to a minute. An outstanding Cab...
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This was a much better showing than a bottle a bit over a year ago. Decanted and drunk over a few hours. Upon opening the nose was much more giving than the last bottle was. While amply tannic, the tannins seem to have subsided enough to give this better balance. Fairly primary and not particularly complex. This probably would have been better with a slab of meat. For my tastes, this probably should be in its full stride in about a year
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Splash decanted for 1 hours then had with lamb - relatively consistent with prior notes - alchohol was not noticeable this time. Full bodied but not over the top. Looks young and its rather primary (blackberry / soy / Black currants, blackberry / black licorice. I was surprised that even my father in-law enjoyed. Much better with food given the tannic structure - 93 for me again.
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nose - attractive dark berry fruit followed bu oak (foreshadowing) mouth - To quote Vaynerchuk, The oak monster strikes! Lush fruit on the attack quickly marred by roast coffee/chocolate covered coffee beans, then a long tannic finish. For lovers of all those supersweet frappe coffee bar drinks. while not bad, i prefer more fruit purity
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Decanted this for over 6 hours. This is a BIG, bold Cab in ever sense of the meaning. Color is dense, dark, purple. Nose is very aromatic with intense currants, cedar, dark fruit. Palate is full-bodied, still full of tannins, oak. For a 2004 this is still showing rather young, but enjoyable with a juicy piece of meat. Long lingering finish. 5+13+16+7=91
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Decanted for 6 hours. Very dark inky purple on the glass. The nose is very concentrated with sweet black fruits or blackberries with a jammy component. Still tannic; the oak seems integrated into the wine, maybe due to the time in the decanter. Tastes really good along the lines of the black fruits with some dark cocoa and some black tea component. I believe this to be still young and will try again in a year or two.
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I think this still needs some time, or at least several hours to open up. Shows a lot of potential but it's tight and not all that approachable. Austere. Surprising as it is an 04 and other quality wines from that vintage are drinking well. I've got three more, I'll give it another year before opening and see how this evolves.
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Lots of sediment, needed to be decanted for at least 2 hours. Very French old world wine on the nose, with strong burnt oak. Big wine on the palate with lots of oak and fruit. Will do well resting for another few years but worth enjoying now - just ensure it's left to breathe for a few hours. An absolute favourite at dinner.
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Definitely needed time -- aerated into decanter, decanted for another hour. Nice fruity nose with earthy hints, strong finish that got better as we drank.
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Enormous concentration; smoky blueberry, creme de cassis, and heavy coffee/espresso tones. Kind of chewy mountain tannic structure and a generous amount of oak. Really quite good but very dense and modern.
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This was quite tight, and could perhaps have used more time in a decanter. Reasonably well balanced, reticent nose, tannins were certainly present but seemed fine-grained. Try in a year to see if it develops some complexity.
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4+ hour decant and passed through the aerator. good dark fruit and toasty oak which adds richness, and seems better integrated than the previous bottle (not decanted). Decant or age.
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really wanted to try this wine early. musty on the nose and the cork started to accumulate crud. subtle fruityness - muted really, but you cantellthis wineis deep. wonderful right out of the bottle, I think it woud be even better decanted for an hour. I'll wait a year for the next bottle and seehowthis wonderful wine decelops.
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nose - oaky, smoked meat, smoky mouth - full bodied, but heavily oaked, actually overoaked, tastes like caramel, per my dad would be good on ice cream, i can see the deep fruit core but it cant break thru the oak. needs time? needs less oak?
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Fedric Koeppel, in his July 3rd entry on his Bigger Than Your Head blog, went all Alice-Feiring-nuclear on the “international style” of cabernet. To wit, “I’m so tired of this crapola. I just want to pour out these damned wines. I’m tired of interchangeable cabernet-based wines that could have been made in Napa or Sonoma, Tuscany or Peidmont, Barossa or Coonawara, Rapel or Mendoza or Walla Walla because they all look and smell and taste and feel the same. Lord, I’m so weary of carefull-calibrated, committe-made cabernets that the toe the line of all the popular, 95-point conventions and cliches.”
Cornerstone is pretty much one of “those” cabernets. Served just above cellar temperature. Slight bottle stink. Slight sour taste that disappeared with about 30 minutes of decanting. Fair amount of sediment. Blackish red color. Blackberry jam and vanilla nose. Thick on the palate with jammy flavors, vanilla, oak, and tannins. Soft finish. Worked well with steak and potatoes. Even though I share Koeppel’s sentiment, I did still find this to be an enjoyable bottle of wine.
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Popped and poured out of a 3 liter. Blackish red color and aromas of red cherry. Not overly complex but very enjoyable and pleasing to many. Flavors of red fruits with a slight tingle on the tongue to remind you that this has a few more years in it to smooth out the lingering tanin. Nice drink.
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Decanted for ~ 1.5 hours per dinner (okay if pop & pour but the alchohol is very noticeable at room temperature). Blackish red color. Black currants, blackberry (more of a blackberry jam with air time) and cedar on the nose. On the palate, black fruits, licorice, tobacco - vibrant acidity (had with a coffee rubbed NY Strip - great match) and sweet, lingering tannins. Full bodied with no flat spots from the attack to the long finish. Very, very, very enjoyable wine - would buy again (if your nose and palate are sensitive to alchohol let this one age a few years - as prior tasters noted, if there is a flaw in the wine it's this - served at a cooler temperature this would be masked. I love this wine but Burgundy drinker's won't enjoy).
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Nose of dark fruit , oak, and alcohol which singes the nose hairs. 'Up there with a fortified spirit' per kelvin. Mouth - rich and very fruit forward. 'A little ribina' per kelvin. Very ripe verging on superripe. A stand alone drink - probably too over the top for food. Some will adore this style. Still rather tannic. Hold
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Dark mountain fruit with plenty of cassis, blackberries and tannin. Alcohol was, however, was a tad too prominent and this took it down a point for me. I decanted it for 5 hours, but it could have used a full day. There are plenty of good underlying elements of dried herbs and some tar but this wine still needs another 3+ years before it sheds some tannins and rounds out. Unfortunately, it is hard to tell what will happen with the high alcohol and whether that will further detract from the wine as it matures.
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This is a wine from one of my favorite areas for cab in Napa Valley, Howell Mountain. We drank this wine over 3 days and it just kept getting better. Can drink it straight form the b ottle, but definitely benefits from 1hr of decanting. Inky red color so different from a French cab. Great bouquet of dark ripe fruit and the same on the palette. Good length and spicy finish. Balance was decent but was eventually overpowered by the 14%+ alcohol content of the wine. In the second and third days, the wine softened out and actually had hints of floral tones on the finish. I bought this wine for $32 and at that price this guy is a no brainer!
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A Taste of Howell Mountain, nose of red and black cherry fruit, licorice, and briar, same on the palate, medium/big body, slightly fruit forward, tasty, soft tannins present, better in 2 years, medium/long finish.
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Dark purple robe, nose of spice, blackberries, leather, some vanilla on midpalate, dry, after warming up in glass blueberries showed up on nose, concentrated/extracted, quite lovely!
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Novovino's spring portfolio: nose: rich, deep, and perfumed nose of cedar, pure tones of red fruits, red currants, creme de cassis, black licorice, and a good helping of red cherries. Very pure on all of the tones with great expressive aromatics
taste: beautifully polished medium/full feel with good silky tannins. Lush and pure tones of spices, red cherries, red fruits, black licorice and a dollop of creme de cassis
overall: this easily rivals a lot of other cabernets that are at least 2x the price. There is a great purity to this with wonderful expression on both the nose and palate that is almost heavenly. Great supporting tannins on this for good aging, this is beautiful right now and should age gracefully over the next 10-15 years
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Vineyard Lunch Gand does Blind Cabs (Jason Hagen's office): Nose shows a lot of sweet oakiness in the way of vanilla and coconut. Thick soft palate with lots of char. Boysenberries pick through before some astringency. I guessed a Switchback.
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2/2/2018 - Grant_gib wrote: 93 Points
Deep chocolate, fairly well balanced, still young.
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7/29/2017 - ppearson9 wrote: 90 Points
Almost past peak.
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9/18/2016 - CWilliam wrote:
Last of 6 - 93+
Decanted for 30 minutes and paired with NY strips. Consistent with my note from 9/2012 except tannins are completely resolved now. "On palate, cassis, dark chocolate, black licorice & black cherry primarily - medium+ body, with great acid / fruit / tannin balance. Went great with grilled skirt steaks. Near or at peak and CT drinking guide (by end of 2018) is pretty accurate if stored correctly"
Very dark color and no signs of oxidation. This was very enjoyable and I don't know why the last bottle I had in 7/2014 was off.
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7/30/2016 - thalver wrote:
Time has made this wine more reticent and soft, the tannins are largely resolved, nice nose, some minerality, the fruit is morphing into more secondary flavors. It lacks the verve that it showed when younger, but exhibits greater complexity
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12/7/2015 - ericindc wrote: 90 Points
A big cab for Napa cab lovers. Still really primary. Full bodied, low acid, moderate tannins. Big black fruits, cassis, vanilla some earth and a nice finish. Not my style, but well made.
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7/3/2015 - soyhead wrote:
big wine, still needs plenty of time
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5/30/2015 - vino wino arturo wrote:
Drank at dabrowski's lambfest. big purple. cali style. good with food. suitable for heavy flavored redmeat.
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5/25/2015 - thalver wrote:
Time has mellowed and balanced the wine. That said, it just seems a muted, better-balanced and smoother version of what it once was. The flavor profile is largely unchanged
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4/28/2015 - ELH wrote: 91 Points
Almost pure fruit, with just a subtle undercurrent of tannins. A mature wine in its prime.
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9/4/2014 - carlsport Likes this wine: 90 Points
Solid. Hour decant. Quite a bit of sediment. Softened on day 2, but still vibrant.
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7/6/2014 - CWilliam wrote:
Not as good as my note from last Summer (enjoyed with grilled steaks on the 4th of July). Did not take notes but wine was a little off (too tannic relative to the fruit?). 91+
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6/8/2014 - andtheodor wrote: 84 Points
Tastes like ripe cab; blueberry, currant, espresso. Probably really good if that's your style. For me, meh.
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5/27/2014 - mxpbuy Likes this wine: 90 Points
Big mountain black fruit, with a touch of alcohol coming through. Some cassis and eucalyptus with Oak and hints of spice. Relatively smooth, but the tannins still have a few chunky elements to them. Not as seamless as you'd hope and with the alcohol it loses a couple points.
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5/20/2014 - ELH wrote: 90 Points
Smooth, soft, and silky.
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11/20/2013 - thalver wrote:
Has softened considerably from where it was a couple/few years ago. It clearly has entered its drinking window. I dont really get the sense more time will yield development of tertiary flavors
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10/14/2013 - mxpbuy Likes this wine: 90 Points
I had kind of given up on this wine but decided to try it again. A very nice bottle. The wine opened fully in 30 minutes. Blackberries and black cherries, some eucalyptus, smooth, sweet Oak, long finish, but just a tad too much heat.
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8/31/2013 - CWilliam wrote:
Continues to drink very well - has improved in my opinion since my last tasting a year ago. Dark red color with a slight meniscus - looks younger than an '04. On nose, black cherry, cassis, vanilla. On palate, cassis, dark chocolate, black licorice & black cherry primarily - medium+ body, with great acid / fruit / tannin balance. Went great with grilled skirt steaks. Near or at peak and CT drinking guide (by end of 2018) is pretty accurate if stored correctly. 93+
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6/2/2013 - mflesh wrote: 92 Points
This bottle is really coming into its element. Required about 30 minutes of decanting (mostly for the sediment). Cork popped to a dirty, sediment filled neck and shoulder was with sediment equally all around. DARK red pour into decanter. Actually rather aromatic when being decanted. I think this bottle was probably a little less intense than some of the ones before, but that's not necessarily a bad thing considering that this was enjoyed with some sushi and I was actually rather hoping that it had started to mellow a bit. Honestly, the reason why this one was probably a little more mellow was because it DIDN'T sit for an hour. The blackberry pie, leather and vanilla were certainly there but not what I remember from the others past. Either way I think it's time to start drinking this one, but I still agree that the end date on this one is 2018 no matter how good you cellar it.
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5/27/2013 - Foodievines Likes this wine: 90 Points
Very reliable wine for us. Nice fruit and balance.
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5/15/2013 - mxpbuy Does not like this wine: 86 Points
Marginally better than last bottle but still well short of where it should be. The fruit is either still hidden or has fallen off significantly since the wine's youth. I'm not presuming the latter situation. While not a rough wine, the tannins are still pretty meaty and unyielding. There is simply little charm to this wine while not really being a "bad" wine. Nonetheless, down the drain goes the second half of the bottle.
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5/6/2013 - Jadenino Likes this wine: 91 Points
Excellent Howell Mountain Cabernet. Smooth with a nice finish.
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4/24/2013 - BklynNeophyte wrote: 86 Points
ok.
3 on the AF scale.
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4/10/2013 - mflesh wrote: 93 Points
Wine was actually opened the day before with one glass poured out for the wife, recorked, and left on the bar until the next night. No comment on that glass. On 4/10, this one was rocking. Nose of Howell Mountain fruit with a slight aroma of vanilla and very dark, dark blackberry. Hint of floral. The palate was velvety blackberry pie with a vanilla pie crust! It wasn't quite as thick or full bodied as I thought it would be, but that kind of changed in the middle. Dark, dark chocolate with blackberry and figs. Finished velvety, yet with a very fine gritty tannin...and some sediment on the bottom of the glass. Sediment all around the neck of the bottle actually. This one was good and I actually think that by 2014/15 it will be right at the height/peak of drinking. Wife commented that glass on day 1 was a little shrewd and a little too oaked. I didn't get that with the last bottle - it seemed ready to go with minimal "prep time."
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1/26/2013 - mrmedoes wrote: 88 Points
Really can't figure this one out. The nose, oh it is absolutely a beaut. Then it is TIGHT, and I don't mean "give it a couple hours" tight. So, you give it a day, thinking "wow, it will sing tomorrow once it opens," and then it just isn't there 24 hours later, having lost the tannins, its amazing nose (it is simply just nice at this point). If blind, I would think this has a lot of cab franc in it, but in reading, there's none there, or at least not according to what I see. It certainly is nice, but you just get the initial notes and get so hopeful about the potential, only to not get delivered.
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12/26/2012 - thalver wrote:
This seems to be in its drinking window. The previously aggressive tannins have come into better balance...medium to full bodied. This bottle seemed to lack a bit of the inner mouth energy of the previous two bottles...it may have been my palate on that day, or bottle variation. Still, a nice wine 91-92
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12/24/2012 - Mark Brandon Likes this wine: 93 Points
Terrific!!! Big Blue Howell cab... great but still not at peak. Maybe 1-2 years it's AGAIG. Decanted 1 hr.
The wine looks Purple colored. The legs are Slow.
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11/28/2012 - mflesh Likes this wine: 94 Points
Nice wine. Uncorked to a black stain with about 2mm of sediment. Nose out of the bottle was blueberry pie and inky spice! The wine was decanted due to the corked sediment. Glad we did. This was basically served as a pop and pour. This poured BLACK into the glass. The nose was all aged blueberry and blackberry. Nice aged nose with a black "wild vanilla." The wine started to show some mildly earthy characteristics in the middle although this is where the inky characteristics really showed up to make up for it and really balanced it well. There was grit, but it was refined. The finish was dense, deep, complex, and SPICY. Went well with the steak and italian herbed topping with roasted butternut squash. This wine is FULL BODIED, and finished as a dark, inky full bodied offering. I am thoroughly pleased with this wine, and I'd truly like to own more. You can pretty much drink this wine now, as it's really quite amazing that it was showing so much complexity, balance and integration with less than 10-15 minutes of decanting. Cellar another 5 years if you must.
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11/11/2012 - mflesh wrote: 93 Points
One of 16 Howell Mtn Vintners at the Fort Worth Club on 11/8/12 with the HMGA, sampling AVA wines. A very nice wine. Compared in series to the 94 and 08 Howell Mtn, you can tell that this one is really starting to get into that perfect drinking window, but i think that this bottle was still a bit restrained and was one of the first samples out of a newly popped bottle. The QPR is....well, maybe a bit off and perhaps the reason why the wine was rated 93. A dark, luscious pour into the glass. I appear to like a Howell Mtn wine with some complex aromatics, because this one had some earth, spice, blackberry, hawthorne with maybe some kind of a honeysuckle flower or something along these lines. This was an intense wine from start to finish, with some blackberry pie and pie spice, black licorice, fig, all up front, settling to a mid-body that showed fantastic integration. Oak is still there in the finish, but did not dominate. The finish was dark, actually not as spicy as most of the others there that night. Tannin was there, but was starting to mellow. I think this wine is at the top of the drinking window and is ready to go NOW! If you have it, start drinking on it because this one showed very well tonight.
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9/9/2012 - CWilliam wrote: 92 Points
Recent CT notes made me nervous so I sampled another bottle - decanted for 1.5 hours before having with grilled pork chops. No degredation in color. Black cherry, blackberry, dark chocolate, tobacco on nose & palate. Secondary characteristics starting to appear. it still has some grippy tannins and was better with food than without. 92+ Will drink 1 bottle per year over the next 3 years but this should hold for a while. On a + note, the alchohol which I noticed 2 years ago did not stand out.
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8/26/2012 - AMC Eagle wrote: 90 Points
Decanted this one for 4+ hours. Very dark purple on the glass; getting blackberries, creme de cassis, and a hint of smokiness on the nose. Fruit forward flavours of black fruits, cassis, licorice and some espresso on the palate complemented with the dusty tannins. Light-medium body and short finish -- feels like this lost something from the last time I tasted this. Paired with a bleu-cheese and bacon burger. Will try again in a year or two. 89-90.
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8/25/2012 - mxpbuy wrote: 85 Points
Sampled 8/24/12. The wine's color is strong, and so is the wine itself, but in a bad way. This wine seems to be getting worse, not better as it evolves. Although there are some bright notes of ripe black and red fruits that appear briefly, the wine has too many astringent notes and bite, too much Oak and the alcohol pops up with brutish fashion at moments. We can only hope this wine is just going through an awkward stage but even after letting breath for 4 hours it was not better. Vin-vacing it and coming back to it the next day did not help either. Down the sink the remainder went.
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7/8/2012 - mrmedoes wrote: 89 Points
Has all the makings of something outstanding, then just never materializes. Opened and gave two hours in a wide decanter, but decided very early on that only half would be day one, which was pretty tannic. Food (a nicely seasoned steak) balanced it better but it was still a big boy. Day two calmed it some, knocking down the tannin level to about what you'd hope for, but it didn't bring the quality wine that seemed to be behind the tannins, which makes me start to wonder if this has the potential to come around or if it is just something that isn't bad for the price.
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5/17/2012 - Foodievines Likes this wine: 92 Points
Deep purple in color, explosive blue and black fruit, cocoa, vanilla, and a hint of toasty oak on the nose. In the mouth, the velvety texture leads you into a big tannic cabernet. More blackberry, cocoa, and a touch of leather with a long finish. Nice wine.
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4/24/2012 - andtheodor wrote: 88 Points
Chocolate covered espresso beans, blueberry, plum, cassis. Quite concentrated and very torrefacted; well made but hard to get excited about. Pretty good.
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3/16/2012 - ngc5904 wrote: 92 Points
Very smooth and balanced
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3/9/2012 - ELH wrote: 90 Points
At a lovely stage of its maturity. Fruit, supple tannins, and a touch of age. Deep dark purple. Decanted in the glass.
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2/28/2012 - mattatpu wrote: 92 Points
This wine is drinking beautifully. Used the vinturi and it opened up great!
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2/15/2012 - Jmartin wrote:
Now we're talking. Third bottle in the last year and this is the best one yet. Decanted for about an hour. The wine is really improving but I think will still benefit from some time in the cellar as well as time to breathe.
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2/3/2012 - tahaus wrote: 91 Points
Big bad Napa Cab. Deep purple, opaque in color. Big plum and black berry flavors with cedar, oak, spice, hint of vanilla and leather flow from the glass and coat the palate for up to a minute. An outstanding Cab...
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10/11/2011 - Jmartin wrote:
Getting better. Previous bottle was 8 months ago. Will stay away for another 8-9.
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9/17/2011 - thalver wrote:
This was a much better showing than a bottle a bit over a year ago. Decanted and drunk over a few hours. Upon opening the nose was much more giving than the last bottle was. While amply tannic, the tannins seem to have subsided enough to give this better balance. Fairly primary and not particularly complex. This probably would have been better with a slab of meat. For my tastes, this probably should be in its full stride in about a year
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8/13/2011 - CWilliam wrote:
Splash decanted for 1 hours then had with lamb - relatively consistent with prior notes - alchohol was not noticeable this time. Full bodied but not over the top. Looks young and its rather primary (blackberry / soy / Black currants, blackberry / black licorice. I was surprised that even my father in-law enjoyed. Much better with food given the tannic structure - 93 for me again.
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6/27/2011 - soyhead wrote: 85 Points
nose - attractive dark berry fruit followed bu oak (foreshadowing)
mouth - To quote Vaynerchuk, The oak monster strikes! Lush fruit on the attack quickly marred by roast coffee/chocolate covered coffee beans, then a long tannic finish. For lovers of all those supersweet frappe coffee bar drinks. while not bad, i prefer more fruit purity
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4/23/2011 - rodsjuice wrote: 91 Points
Decanted this for over 6 hours. This is a BIG, bold Cab in ever sense of the meaning. Color is dense, dark, purple. Nose is very aromatic with intense currants, cedar, dark fruit. Palate is full-bodied, still full of tannins, oak. For a 2004 this is still showing rather young, but enjoyable with a juicy piece of meat. Long lingering finish. 5+13+16+7=91
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4/9/2011 - AMC Eagle wrote: 91 Points
Decanted for 6 hours. Very dark inky purple on the glass. The nose is very concentrated with sweet black fruits or blackberries with a jammy component. Still tannic; the oak seems integrated into the wine, maybe due to the time in the decanter. Tastes really good along the lines of the black fruits with some dark cocoa and some black tea component. I believe this to be still young and will try again in a year or two.
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2/23/2011 - Jmartin wrote:
I think this still needs some time, or at least several hours to open up. Shows a lot of potential but it's tight and not all that approachable. Austere. Surprising as it is an 04 and other quality wines from that vintage are drinking well. I've got three more, I'll give it another year before opening and see how this evolves.
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2/12/2011 - Decster wrote: 90 Points
Lots of sediment, needed to be decanted for at least 2 hours. Very French old world wine on the nose, with strong burnt oak. Big wine on the palate with lots of oak and fruit. Will do well resting for another few years but worth enjoying now - just ensure it's left to breathe for a few hours. An absolute favourite at dinner.
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12/30/2010 - mho wrote: 89 Points
Definitely needed time -- aerated into decanter, decanted for another hour. Nice fruity nose with earthy hints, strong finish that got better as we drank.
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10/9/2010 - Share 67 wrote: 91 Points
very nice bottle
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9/14/2010 - andtheodor wrote: 90 Points
Enormous concentration; smoky blueberry, creme de cassis, and heavy coffee/espresso tones. Kind of chewy mountain tannic structure and a generous amount of oak. Really quite good but very dense and modern.
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8/17/2010 - thalver wrote:
This was quite tight, and could perhaps have used more time in a decanter. Reasonably well balanced, reticent nose, tannins were certainly present but seemed fine-grained. Try in a year to see if it develops some complexity.
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8/15/2010 - soyhead wrote: 91 Points
4+ hour decant and passed through the aerator.
good dark fruit and toasty oak which adds richness, and seems better integrated than the previous bottle (not decanted). Decant or age.
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8/13/2010 - pierrebiere wrote: 90 Points
really wanted to try this wine early. musty on the nose and the cork started to accumulate crud. subtle fruityness - muted really, but you cantellthis wineis deep. wonderful right out of the bottle, I think it woud be even better decanted for an hour. I'll wait a year for the next bottle and seehowthis wonderful wine decelops.
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7/28/2010 - soyhead wrote: 86 Points
nose - oaky, smoked meat, smoky
mouth - full bodied, but heavily oaked, actually overoaked, tastes like caramel, per my dad would be good on ice cream, i can see the deep fruit core but it cant break thru the oak. needs time? needs less oak?
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7/17/2010 - NPWolfe wrote:
Fedric Koeppel, in his July 3rd entry on his Bigger Than Your Head blog, went all Alice-Feiring-nuclear on the “international style” of cabernet. To wit, “I’m so tired of this crapola. I just want to pour out these damned wines. I’m tired of interchangeable cabernet-based wines that could have been made in Napa or Sonoma, Tuscany or Peidmont, Barossa or Coonawara, Rapel or Mendoza or Walla Walla because they all look and smell and taste and feel the same. Lord, I’m so weary of carefull-calibrated, committe-made cabernets that the toe the line of all the popular, 95-point conventions and cliches.”
Cornerstone is pretty much one of “those” cabernets. Served just above cellar temperature. Slight bottle stink. Slight sour taste that disappeared with about 30 minutes of decanting. Fair amount of sediment. Blackish red color. Blackberry jam and vanilla nose. Thick on the palate with jammy flavors, vanilla, oak, and tannins. Soft finish. Worked well with steak and potatoes. Even though I share Koeppel’s sentiment, I did still find this to be an enjoyable bottle of wine.
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7/5/2010 - rwstorer wrote: 91 Points
Popped and poured out of a 3 liter. Blackish red color and aromas of red cherry. Not overly complex but very enjoyable and pleasing to many. Flavors of red fruits with a slight tingle on the tongue to remind you that this has a few more years in it to smooth out the lingering tanin. Nice drink.
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6/20/2010 - CWilliam wrote: 93 Points
Decanted for ~ 1.5 hours per dinner (okay if pop & pour but the alchohol is very noticeable at room temperature). Blackish red color. Black currants, blackberry (more of a blackberry jam with air time) and cedar on the nose. On the palate, black fruits, licorice, tobacco - vibrant acidity (had with a coffee rubbed NY Strip - great match) and sweet, lingering tannins. Full bodied with no flat spots from the attack to the long finish. Very, very, very enjoyable wine - would buy again (if your nose and palate are sensitive to alchohol let this one age a few years - as prior tasters noted, if there is a flaw in the wine it's this - served at a cooler temperature this would be masked. I love this wine but Burgundy drinker's won't enjoy).
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6/6/2010 - soyhead wrote: 90 Points
Nose of dark fruit , oak, and alcohol which singes the nose hairs. 'Up there with a fortified spirit' per kelvin. Mouth - rich and very fruit forward. 'A little ribina' per kelvin. Very ripe verging on superripe. A stand alone drink - probably too over the top for food. Some will adore this style. Still rather tannic. Hold
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5/30/2010 - mxpbuy wrote: 92 Points
Dark mountain fruit with plenty of cassis, blackberries and tannin. Alcohol was, however, was a tad too prominent and this took it down a point for me. I decanted it for 5 hours, but it could have used a full day. There are plenty of good underlying elements of dried herbs and some tar but this wine still needs another 3+ years before it sheds some tannins and rounds out. Unfortunately, it is hard to tell what will happen with the high alcohol and whether that will further detract from the wine as it matures.
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5/27/2010 - duggarm@outlook.com wrote: 93 Points
This is a wine from one of my favorite areas for cab in Napa Valley, Howell Mountain. We drank this wine over 3 days and it just kept getting better. Can drink it straight form the b ottle, but definitely benefits from 1hr of decanting. Inky red color so different from a French cab. Great bouquet of dark ripe fruit and the same on the palette. Good length and spicy finish. Balance was decent but was eventually overpowered by the 14%+ alcohol content of the wine. In the second and third days, the wine softened out and actually had hints of floral tones on the finish. I bought this wine for $32 and at that price this guy is a no brainer!
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6/20/2009 - bestdamncab Likes this wine: 89 Points
A Taste of Howell Mountain, nose of red and black cherry fruit, licorice, and briar, same on the palate, medium/big body, slightly fruit forward, tasty, soft tannins present, better in 2 years, medium/long finish.
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5/30/2009 - ChickadeeSharon wrote: 92 Points
Dark purple robe, nose of spice, blackberries, leather, some vanilla on midpalate, dry, after warming up in glass blueberries showed up on nose, concentrated/extracted, quite lovely!
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3/16/2009 - KeithAkers wrote: 94 Points
Novovino's spring portfolio: nose: rich, deep, and perfumed nose of cedar, pure tones of red fruits, red currants, creme de cassis, black licorice, and a good helping of red cherries. Very pure on all of the tones with great expressive aromatics
taste: beautifully polished medium/full feel with good silky tannins. Lush and pure tones of spices, red cherries, red fruits, black licorice and a dollop of creme de cassis
overall: this easily rivals a lot of other cabernets that are at least 2x the price. There is a great purity to this with wonderful expression on both the nose and palate that is almost heavenly. Great supporting tannins on this for good aging, this is beautiful right now and should age gracefully over the next 10-15 years
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2/19/2009 - WetRock wrote:
Vineyard Lunch Gand does Blind Cabs (Jason Hagen's office): Nose shows a lot of sweet oakiness in the way of vanilla and coconut. Thick soft palate with lots of char. Boysenberries pick through before some astringency. I guessed a Switchback.
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