Vertical tasting with 2005, 2006, 2007, 2011 and 2013. This was probably the best of the bunch today with the 13 challenging the 2007. The 07 is more complete than 05 and 06. The 07 will drink well for 2 decades and is likely to reach prime in the next 5-10 years. Revisit 2027
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
Winapalooza VI; 9/2/2022-9/4/2022 (Atlanta): Another generous Palooza contribution from Mark who knows that I live 2007 and that I have never had Cardinale. Drank some at dinner and some lter in the night. Loved it. Sweet fruit, smooth, so much depth, just soft and sweet and delicious.
Dinner wine with Jen/Paul at a great Atlanta restaurant, St. Cecilia's. 2nd note on this in the past month. Not scoring again, but notes and score very similar to my last bottle. Maybe 1-2 pts compared to the last bottle?
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Two hour slow ox. Nearly opaque, bright, hazy magenta color. Dark maple syrup, balsamic vinaigrette, plum, and white truffle dust on the nose. Silky smooth, dry palate, with tongue coating acidity. Firm, but low intensity tannins on the longish finish.
This is a beautiful wine that has aged very well. It’s still got wonderful structure and complexity. It’s probably past its peak for my palate, but I thoroughly enjoyed trying it.
Pnp'd with Melissa/Jaime at their home, to taste/gauge it's place for this evening's festivities. Initial nose of aged plums, not pruney or raisiny, yet. Initial palate of soft red fruit with all components well integrated. A soft, feminine wine at this stage. Vacu-vined and into the fridge for tonight.
Omg.....4-8 hours later and this is most probably the WOTN for me and at least one other at the table. Slight balsamic note, graphite and while a Napa Bdx blend, so different than the French Bdx's poured tonight. Just a beautiful aged Napa nose and palate. Soft, fully integrated and drinking so well, right now. I hope others out there have this and can really enjoy it right now......
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Not going to give this a score since I really have not made up my mind about this. 2 hrs air. Nose is full of dark berries - blackberry, boysenberry - along with tobacco and a little graphite. Palate is extraordinarily dense - so much so that it is easy to dismiss this as a lush but undistinct CA cab. (And the flavor is dense even though it isn’t a particularly big wine at all). That could be a mistake: to me this tasted very Bordeaux - like , St Julien in particular , Leoville-Barton if I have to reach a bit. It has the penetrating depth of a great St Julien but lacks the delineation. I am not at all convinced, given the extreme density of the taste, that this lack of delineation is anything more than just opening it too soon. Now that of course is a big if, because I have had several 2007 Napa cabs, including Dominus, that were really open for business with a little air. 2007 in general has been for me a spectacular success for Napa. Is Cardinale really that backward in 2007? Well, it could just be. At any rate, I would take a chance and put any of these you had at the back of the cellar for another decade on the off chance that this could be truly spectacular. Because if that pays off, wow.
A day later: plugged up with argon. This wine was more giving of blueberry and light spice than before. Overall a little more focused. Still very dense taste, maybe a matter of the fine grained tannins. Very smooth. Really quite nice. Not a big change from yesterday but just more balanced and focused. Also a little more typical of CA ( to me at least ) than initially. Maybe this just needs a decade of sleep. Ready to score it now. Score : 93. Relative to expectations: +
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Superb. The way a California Cabernet should taste. Not too big. Dark, small tannins that give it just enough to wake up your mouth. Wish I had a cellar full.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
Decanted and served with dinner. Deliciously balanced palate of red and black fruit with drying tannic finish. While the quality of the fruit is good the wine lacks the focus or intensity I would look for at the price point. Many wines of similar quality for half the price.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
A very enjoyable Cabernet with intense red and dark fruits + secondary notes that are well integrated. Didn’t get a lot of tertiary. Long finish. Well balanced. Surprised by the body which was only medium
Perhaps it could Keep aging but I’d probably have it now.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
This classy wine is drinking beautifully right now, with just the right mixture of ripeness, structure, and earthiness. Ruby red in color, medium in body, nose of plum, black licorice, and fresh pine. Layered and gracious tastes of blueberry, anise, pencil lead, and warm gravel, with silky and integrated tannins that support a cascading finish that goes on and on. 14.8% alcohol. Blend of 86% Cabernet Sauvignon and 14% Merlot. Blend of 94% mountain vineyards (67% Veeder, 20% Howell, 3.4% Diamond, 3.2% Spring), with the remaining 6% coming from the valley floor (3.4% To Kalon and 3% St. Helena).
Above all else, this wine has impeccable balance, seemingly poised at the midpoint between maturing and aging. Indeed, this has a softness that I didn't expect after drinking the 2008 (or even after drinking this vintage at the winery a few months ago). This wine is powerful, but it won't knock you over with intensity; instead, it draws you in with nuance and class, and it never quite lets go. Drink now or in next year or three. 96+.
2 people found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
First stop on our fifth day in Napa Valley is Cardinale Winery. Third wine is an older vintage of their Flagship bottling, which is made up of 86% Cabernet Sauvingon and 14% Merlot. The fruit comes from the following AVAs; Mount Veeder (67% - Veeder Peak), Howell Mountain (20% - W. S. Keyes), Oakville (3.4% - To Kalon), Diamond Mountain (3.4% - Andrew Geoffrey), Spring Mountain (3.2% - Spring Mountain) and St. Helena (3% Van Z). Aged for a total of 19 months in 90% new French oak.
Garnet edges with a dark ruby core. Dark nose coated in leather, tobacco, espresso, and dark kirsch cherries. Solid acidity on the palate, a touch more than the 2014 with gritty tannins (8/10) and full bodied. Still showing a lot of strength with flavors of dried cherries, black currants and gravel. Your whole palate is gripped with a dry and long finish. Drink till 2033. (94+)
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
This bottle didn't show well. I suspect it was cooked or oxidized a bit. Restrained all the way around with some slight bitterness on the finish. I expected a more mouth-filling wine.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
A very big wine that needed over an hour to calm down a bit. Still big tannins. Clearly a Napa Cab with blackberries and dusty tannins. After an hour or so, it smoothed out a bit. Likely at its peak over the next 5 years.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Winter in Wineland; 1/14/2017-1/20/2017 (Sonoma & Napa): Tasted at the winery and there's never a bad wine there, but this wasn't 100% my favorite of the group. Still very enjoyable. It's much more refined than the '13 Cardinale. More things have come into balance and it knows what it wants to be. My issue with '07 is that while it can be a beautiful wine, it lacks the intrigue of some other vintages. Lots of fig, some spice, well balanced, and then like a record on repeat every time I revisited it was the same thing. Delicious, but I always like those wines that tease you and make you feel like you need to update the notes because they are constantly evolving. But, like I said above, delicious.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
This was a generous Napa bomb but one that brought finesse and elegance. Predominant flavors were of blackberry, tobacco, and red currant. The alcohol was balanced but a solid Mid +. Tannins were medium and integrated and acidity was a present M. The finish was long, long, long. We decanted two hours before which seemed to mellow the aggressive posture out of the gate.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Napa Valley Master Class with Robert Parker; 11/10/2016-11/20/2016 (Napa Valley): During a Napa 2007 horizontal tasting guided by Robert Parker. Ripe nose of cake, bakery, gingerbread, lots of oak, not much secondary aromas. The palate is bold and big, sweet, spicy tones as well adding complexity. Dry finish at the end from the tannins. This looks like a wine that has suffered from hydric stress and warm weather because the volume is rich but the phenolic ripeness lagging behind.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Decanted about 6 hours and consumed over the next few days. I was not impressed with the initial tastings, but I think this is still too closed off. After a couple of days in the decanter, really opened up nicely. Tending toward the aromatic side, not enough depth of fruit to score in the stratosphere. With more cellar time, could be a 98-99.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Jon and Kris with a huge steak. Fine grain tannins. Very smooth and silky. Jumped nicely out of the glass, without overwhelming. Mint, cassis, tar, graphite. Pretty and sophisticated
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Decanted about 8 hours and consumed over the next 48. Very closed off, even after 24 hours, still hard has nails. Opened up the next day. I think this may be a 99 point wine, but needs some serious cellar time.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Had the pleasure of doing a tasting while visiting Cardinale in Oakville earlier this month. Tried the 2010 and the 2007, and my wife and I both agreed the 2007 was the winner at this point. Amazing stuff, very complex nose, and long lasting finish.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
This was a really special wine. I no longer drink a lot of Cali-Cab, having migrated more towards the Rhone varietals, but this was a real reminder of just how fine a Napa Cab can be. Tasted side-by-side with AO-II. The AO-II held its own at a fraction of the cost!
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Powerhouse. Dark violet red in color, something dense in the swirl of this wine. Nose is packed with Napa hillside soil, with traces of grape seed, leather, smoke, super concentrated berry jam. Taste is more of the same, but it's the lasting quality, the blackberry compote smoke just goes on and on. Delicious now, will last a long time.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Once again Chris hits this on the head. Massive nose, just loaded with freshness. Balanced with fruit, minerality. You can taste the terroir from where this was grown. I was out walking the vineyard earlier tasting the fruit from the vine and this wine directly translates what these beautiful grapes should become. The tannin and the depth. Nothing is masked or overpowered. Everything is showing up in all the right places and overall it is a masterpiece.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Beautiful and complex nose. Also orgasmic nose. Sorry but that good. Black cherry & currant followed. Hints of leather and granite. Silky smooth tannins which coat the palate. Well rounded, and fruit driven yet complex. Long lasting lingering finish. Blew me away. Worth the money because it was ridiculous. Sorry for typos...I blame the iphone.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
With bone-in filet.., breathtaking. Will climb one point per year and peak for years. Brilliant, flawless, elegant, rich.., big but not huge. Loved it. Just wonderful.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Crimson blackish with mellow aromatics. I do smell red berries, plum and spice. Full body with bold moderate tannins. Big cherry, plum and black currant with a bit of crushed rock. Not as complex as one would think. This is high end basic.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Don't know if a young Cali red gets any better than this...luxurious nose with complexity...wonderful mouthfeel, surprisingly accessible at this junction...and the finish goes on and on...hats off to Mr. C
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
2/12/2023 - Fftjr Likes this wine: 92 Points
Subtle nose, well balanced fruit and tanin. Ready to drink. Part of 3 vintage vertical. ‘05, ‘06, 07. Plus ‘11 and ‘12.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
2/9/2023 - N.Bonaparte wrote: 93 Points
Vertical tasting with 2005, 2006, 2007, 2011 and 2013. This was probably the best of the bunch today with the 13 challenging the 2007. The 07 is more complete than 05 and 06. The 07 will drink well for 2 decades and is likely to reach prime in the next 5-10 years. Revisit 2027
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
10/7/2022 - Wino from Michigan wrote: 93 Points
Super smooth and balanced - drinking perfect - do not hold. Decanted 1 hour. Fought over last sips.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
9/3/2022 - Decanting Queen wrote: 95 Points
Winapalooza VI; 9/2/2022-9/4/2022 (Atlanta): Another generous Palooza contribution from Mark who knows that I live 2007 and that I have never had Cardinale. Drank some at dinner and some lter in the night. Loved it. Sweet fruit, smooth, so much depth, just soft and sweet and delicious.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comments (1)
9/3/2022 - Mark1npt Likes this wine:
Dinner wine with Jen/Paul at a great Atlanta restaurant, St. Cecilia's. 2nd note on this in the past month. Not scoring again, but notes and score very similar to my last bottle. Maybe 1-2 pts compared to the last bottle?
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
8/13/2022 - AGELVIS Likes this wine: 95 Points
Two hour slow ox. Nearly opaque, bright, hazy magenta color. Dark maple syrup, balsamic vinaigrette, plum, and white truffle dust on the nose. Silky smooth, dry palate, with tongue coating acidity. Firm, but low intensity tannins on the longish finish.
This is a beautiful wine that has aged very well. It’s still got wonderful structure and complexity. It’s probably past its peak for my palate, but I thoroughly enjoyed trying it.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comments (1)
8/13/2022 - Mark1npt Likes this wine: 97 Points
Pnp'd with Melissa/Jaime at their home, to taste/gauge it's place for this evening's festivities. Initial nose of aged plums, not pruney or raisiny, yet. Initial palate of soft red fruit with all components well integrated. A soft, feminine wine at this stage. Vacu-vined and into the fridge for tonight.
Omg.....4-8 hours later and this is most probably the WOTN for me and at least one other at the table. Slight balsamic note, graphite and while a Napa Bdx blend, so different than the French Bdx's poured tonight. Just a beautiful aged Napa nose and palate. Soft, fully integrated and drinking so well, right now. I hope others out there have this and can really enjoy it right now......
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
1/29/2022 - JJYoyo Likes this wine: 93 Points
Not going to give this a score since I really have not made up my mind about this. 2 hrs air. Nose is full of dark berries - blackberry, boysenberry - along with tobacco and a little graphite. Palate is extraordinarily dense - so much so that it is easy to dismiss this as a lush but undistinct CA cab. (And the flavor is dense even though it isn’t a particularly big wine at all). That could be a mistake: to me this tasted very Bordeaux - like , St Julien in particular , Leoville-Barton if I have to reach a bit. It has the penetrating depth of a great St Julien but lacks the delineation. I am not at all convinced, given the extreme density of the taste, that this lack of delineation is anything more than just opening it too soon. Now that of course is a big if, because I have had several 2007 Napa cabs, including Dominus, that were really open for business with a little air. 2007 in general has been for me a spectacular success for Napa. Is Cardinale really that backward in 2007? Well, it could just be.
At any rate, I would take a chance and put any of these you had at the back of the cellar for another decade on the off chance that this could be truly spectacular. Because if that pays off, wow.
A day later: plugged up with argon. This wine was more giving of blueberry and light spice than before. Overall a little more focused. Still very dense taste, maybe a matter of the fine grained tannins. Very smooth. Really quite nice. Not a big change from yesterday but just more balanced and focused. Also a little more typical of CA ( to me at least ) than initially. Maybe this just needs a decade of sleep. Ready to score it now.
Score : 93. Relative to expectations: +
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
11/23/2021 - Vancouver Likes this wine: 94 Points
Drank at an afternoon BYOB restaurant tasting.
Deep ruby appearance with very little lightening.
Complex and evolved nose of black fruits, baking spice, vanilla and even some floral elements (violets). Very classy bouquet!
Full bodied with medium acidity, fully resolved tannins and plenty of structure and flavor intensity. The finish is long.
Very well done- drink now or cellar for another decade.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
5/23/2021 - Wino from Michigan wrote: 94 Points
Amazing — drank really well
Love Cardinale
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
5/15/2021 - Schneider831 Likes this wine: 97 Points
Decanted two hours. It was a fantastic wine - smooth, full-bodied, with a great finish. It went great with Wagu Filet Mignon.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
5/22/2020 - JCaress wrote: 97 Points
Superb. The way a California Cabernet should taste. Not too big. Dark, small tannins that give it just enough to wake up your mouth. Wish I had a cellar full.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
4/1/2020 - MarkMich wrote: 96 Points
Fantastic. Drink now.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
12/24/2019 - RobertLA Likes this wine: 91 Points
Superb wine. Drinking perfectly now. Refined tannins with good fruit expression.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
9/14/2019 - Laswank wrote:
Excellent with beef. Big, but not too big. Black fruits.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
5/13/2019 - Quiet Lion Likes this wine: 93 Points
Decanted and served with dinner. Deliciously balanced palate of red and black fruit with drying tannic finish. While the quality of the fruit is good the wine lacks the focus or intensity I would look for at the price point. Many wines of similar quality for half the price.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
3/7/2019 - peeyush wrote: 90 Points
Ok
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
12/25/2018 - Ahughes444 Likes this wine: 93 Points
A very enjoyable Cabernet with intense red and dark fruits + secondary notes that are well integrated. Didn’t get a lot of tertiary. Long finish. Well balanced. Surprised by the body which was only medium
Perhaps it could Keep aging but I’d probably have it now.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
9/1/2018 - KenPlace wrote: 95 Points
Fabulous. Beautifully balanced wine with a good amount of acidity to pair well with food.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
6/5/2018 - msuwine wrote: 96 Points
This classy wine is drinking beautifully right now, with just the right mixture of ripeness, structure, and earthiness. Ruby red in color, medium in body, nose of plum, black licorice, and fresh pine. Layered and gracious tastes of blueberry, anise, pencil lead, and warm gravel, with silky and integrated tannins that support a cascading finish that goes on and on. 14.8% alcohol. Blend of 86% Cabernet Sauvignon and 14% Merlot. Blend of 94% mountain vineyards (67% Veeder, 20% Howell, 3.4% Diamond, 3.2% Spring), with the remaining 6% coming from the valley floor (3.4% To Kalon and 3% St. Helena).
Above all else, this wine has impeccable balance, seemingly poised at the midpoint between maturing and aging. Indeed, this has a softness that I didn't expect after drinking the 2008 (or even after drinking this vintage at the winery a few months ago). This wine is powerful, but it won't knock you over with intensity; instead, it draws you in with nuance and class, and it never quite lets go. Drink now or in next year or three. 96+.
2 people found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
5/31/2018 - Millennial Drinkers wrote: 94 Points
First stop on our fifth day in Napa Valley is Cardinale Winery. Third wine is an older vintage of their Flagship bottling, which is made up of 86% Cabernet Sauvingon and 14% Merlot. The fruit comes from the following AVAs; Mount Veeder (67% - Veeder Peak), Howell Mountain (20% - W. S. Keyes), Oakville (3.4% - To Kalon), Diamond Mountain (3.4% - Andrew Geoffrey), Spring Mountain (3.2% - Spring Mountain) and St. Helena (3% Van Z). Aged for a total of 19 months in 90% new French oak.
Garnet edges with a dark ruby core. Dark nose coated in leather, tobacco, espresso, and dark kirsch cherries. Solid acidity on the palate, a touch more than the 2014 with gritty tannins (8/10) and full bodied. Still showing a lot of strength with flavors of dried cherries, black currants and gravel. Your whole palate is gripped with a dry and long finish. Drink till 2033. (94+)
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
2/17/2018 - Asmiller Likes this wine: 99 Points
W.O.W.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
2/7/2018 - Quiet Lion wrote:
This bottle didn't show well. I suspect it was cooked or oxidized a bit. Restrained all the way around with some slight bitterness on the finish. I expected a more mouth-filling wine.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
1/13/2018 - mxpbuy Likes this wine: 93 Points
A very big wine that needed over an hour to calm down a bit. Still big tannins. Clearly a Napa Cab with blackberries and dusty tannins. After an hour or so, it smoothed out a bit. Likely at its peak over the next 5 years.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
12/27/2017 - Turtlerider Likes this wine:
Big black fruit, fine tannins and a long, long finish. Very nice California Cab.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
2/16/2017 - fcxj wrote: 92 Points
Floral, black fruit aroma. Enjoyable Cali Cab.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
1/20/2017 - MC2 Wines Likes this wine:
Winter in Wineland; 1/14/2017-1/20/2017 (Sonoma & Napa): Tasted at the winery and there's never a bad wine there, but this wasn't 100% my favorite of the group. Still very enjoyable. It's much more refined than the '13 Cardinale. More things have come into balance and it knows what it wants to be. My issue with '07 is that while it can be a beautiful wine, it lacks the intrigue of some other vintages. Lots of fig, some spice, well balanced, and then like a record on repeat every time I revisited it was the same thing. Delicious, but I always like those wines that tease you and make you feel like you need to update the notes because they are constantly evolving. But, like I said above, delicious.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
1/2/2017 - aaronsoj wrote:
This was a generous Napa bomb but one that brought finesse and elegance. Predominant flavors were of blackberry, tobacco, and red currant. The alcohol was balanced but a solid Mid +. Tannins were medium and integrated and acidity was a present M. The finish was long, long, long. We decanted two hours before which seemed to mellow the aggressive posture out of the gate.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
11/18/2016 - Collector1855 wrote: 91 Points
Napa Valley Master Class with Robert Parker; 11/10/2016-11/20/2016 (Napa Valley): During a Napa 2007 horizontal tasting guided by Robert Parker. Ripe nose of cake, bakery, gingerbread, lots of oak, not much secondary aromas. The palate is bold and big, sweet, spicy tones as well adding complexity. Dry finish at the end from the tannins. This looks like a wine that has suffered from hydric stress and warm weather because the volume is rich but the phenolic ripeness lagging behind.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
9/19/2016 - webbaker Likes this wine: 96 Points
Decanted about 6 hours and consumed over the next few days. I was not impressed with the initial tastings, but I think this is still too closed off. After a couple of days in the decanter, really opened up nicely. Tending toward the aromatic side, not enough depth of fruit to score in the stratosphere. With more cellar time, could be a 98-99.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
10/12/2015 - khunchris wrote: 95 Points
Jon and Kris with a huge steak. Fine grain tannins. Very smooth and silky. Jumped nicely out of the glass, without overwhelming. Mint, cassis, tar, graphite. Pretty and sophisticated
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
7/12/2015 - KenPlace wrote: 94 Points
Fantastic wine. Very concentrated and long. A little one dimensional at the moment.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
1/17/2015 - WillT wrote: 93 Points
Really extraordinary. Great finesse. Not huge like so many California Cabernets.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
1/17/2015 - WillT Likes this wine: 94 Points
Really a special wine.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
1/10/2015 - webbaker Likes this wine: 96 Points
Decanted about 8 hours and consumed over the next 48. Very closed off, even after 24 hours, still hard has nails. Opened up the next day. I think this may be a 99 point wine, but needs some serious cellar time.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
12/3/2014 - agrulich21 Likes this wine: 94 Points
Had the pleasure of doing a tasting while visiting Cardinale in Oakville earlier this month. Tried the 2010 and the 2007, and my wife and I both agreed the 2007 was the winner at this point. Amazing stuff, very complex nose, and long lasting finish.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
11/17/2014 - SLOFred Likes this wine: 93 Points
This was a really special wine. I no longer drink a lot of Cali-Cab, having migrated more towards the Rhone varietals, but this was a real reminder of just how fine a Napa Cab can be. Tasted side-by-side with AO-II. The AO-II held its own at a fraction of the cost!
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
12/16/2013 - JasonG Likes this wine: 94 Points
Powerhouse. Dark violet red in color, something dense in the swirl of this wine. Nose is packed with Napa hillside soil, with traces of grape seed, leather, smoke, super concentrated berry jam. Taste is more of the same, but it's the lasting quality, the blackberry compote smoke just goes on and on. Delicious now, will last a long time.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
9/24/2013 - JDV.DDSPHD Likes this wine: 99 Points
Once again Chris hits this on the head. Massive nose, just loaded with freshness. Balanced with fruit, minerality. You can taste the terroir from where this was grown. I was out walking the vineyard earlier tasting the fruit from the vine and this wine directly translates what these beautiful grapes should become. The tannin and the depth. Nothing is masked or overpowered. Everything is showing up in all the right places and overall it is a masterpiece.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
9/6/2013 - WVWine wrote: 96 Points
Best Cardinale ever. Amazing fruit (berry) and smells (cedar and spice). Long finish.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
7/26/2013 - JDV.DDSPHD wrote: 96 Points
Beautiful and complex nose. Also orgasmic nose. Sorry but that good. Black cherry & currant followed. Hints of leather and granite. Silky smooth tannins which coat the palate. Well rounded, and fruit driven yet complex. Long lasting lingering finish. Blew me away. Worth the money because it was ridiculous. Sorry for typos...I blame the iphone.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
2/17/2013 - vancouvermatt wrote: 98 Points
Refined. Silky. Sensual. Ripe, but not HUGE. A finish that sails on & on.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
2/23/2012 - Mark Brandon wrote: 97 Points
With bone-in filet.., breathtaking. Will climb one point per year and peak for years. Brilliant, flawless, elegant, rich.., big but not huge. Loved it. Just wonderful.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
1/10/2012 - GreatLibations wrote: 92 Points
Crimson blackish with mellow aromatics. I do smell red berries, plum and spice. Full body with bold moderate tannins. Big cherry, plum and black currant with a bit of crushed rock. Not as complex as one would think. This is high end basic.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
3/27/2011 - zoeldar wrote: 98 Points
Don't know if a young Cali red gets any better than this...luxurious nose with complexity...wonderful mouthfeel, surprisingly accessible at this junction...and the finish goes on and on...hats off to Mr. C
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
3/26/2011 - rdrunner wrote: 95 Points
Great juice !
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment