In a really nice place, elegant and powerful both, dark fruits, blackberry, black currants, hint of pencil lead, integrated tannins, long finish, delightful
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This is a happy place wine, one where you sit and swirl and sip and swirl some more and savour every drop and the wine takes you to your happy place. Most underrated producer in the Napa Valley? They’re on the short list. Sandi and John are lovely people with serious Napa Valley bona fides. The vineyards are just below the Howell Mountain AVA demarcation line, but this wine is really a Howell Mountain wine. I read that the estate vineyards were sold to David Abreu in 2019, so I’m really glad we have bottles across several vintages. The 2010 is spectacular at this point, but there really aren’t a lot of tertiary characteristics if that’s what you’re into. Rather, there’s a lot of fruit here, but the fruit and oak have beautifully integrated into this smooth, gorgeous version of everything we want in cab. It’s Napa Valley, with an old world sensibility like Dunn or Forman and that may imply that it’s a tannic beast with a long rest ahead of it. It’s not, it’s just a great wine and ready go, but this could age in the cellar for 10 years easily if you want to see where it goes. Consumed with a gorgeous charcuterie board and decanted for 2 hours.
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8/14/2023 - ShadowIII Likes this wine: 93 Points
In a really nice place, elegant and powerful both, dark fruits, blackberry, black currants, hint of pencil lead, integrated tannins, long finish, delightful
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11/21/2021 - winespine Likes this wine: 96 Points
This is a happy place wine, one where you sit and swirl and sip and swirl some more and savour every drop and the wine takes you to your happy place. Most underrated producer in the Napa Valley? They’re on the short list. Sandi and John are lovely people with serious Napa Valley bona fides. The vineyards are just below the Howell Mountain AVA demarcation line, but this wine is really a Howell Mountain wine. I read that the estate vineyards were sold to David Abreu in 2019, so I’m really glad we have bottles across several vintages. The 2010 is spectacular at this point, but there really aren’t a lot of tertiary characteristics if that’s what you’re into. Rather, there’s a lot of fruit here, but the fruit and oak have beautifully integrated into this smooth, gorgeous version of everything we want in cab. It’s Napa Valley, with an old world sensibility like Dunn or Forman and that may imply that it’s a tannic beast with a long rest ahead of it. It’s not, it’s just a great wine and ready go, but this could age in the cellar for 10 years easily if you want to see where it goes. Consumed with a gorgeous charcuterie board and decanted for 2 hours.
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8/27/2017 - WestonGRfx wrote: 92 Points
Our favorite cab!
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4/18/2015 - Millennial Drinkers wrote: 93 Points
30th Addy Bassin's California Barrel Tasting (The Mandarin Oriental Hotel): 91-93+
Cassis, smooth palate, decanted for three hours, a lot smoother than 2013
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4/18/2015 - cab blends wrote: 94 Points
California Tasting (Barrel Tasting and an slight older): More seductive and smooth than the 2013. This was smooth and drinking beautifully. It had been decanted for 3 hours.
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