2015 Cardinale

Community Tasting Notes (15) Avg Score: 94.1 points

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  2/10/2023 - MC2 Wines Likes this wine:

  Napa 2023: the quieter version; 2/6/2023-2/11/2023 (Napa/Sonoma California): Wedding wine year so we’ve bought this in the past but somehow never drunk it before. Served blind. I would not have gotten it. To my there was more tannin than the Lokoya, more grip, lots of blackberry. There’s something that had a Merlot side to it (which it does have). I can see the cab, but I’d have guessed more like a 2014 which is more accessible but maybe because I haven’t been spending enough time with the 2015s which seem to be much more open than they were when we were first trying them a few years ago.

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  5/8/2021 - greg@newsomehh.com Likes this wine: 92 Points

  Decanted for a couple hours, really smooth

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  12/5/2020 - zylmanj Likes this wine: 92 Points

  I think this still needs some time. It is good but seems thin and a little out of balance. Good aroma and good tasting with a little medicinal astringency on the tail end. Due to the price tag on this bad boy I don't see myself buying another one. IT was good but priced for great.

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  11/19/2020 - apg23 Likes this wine: 94 Points

  Tasted at a Wine Social Night at the bank branch. Liked it much more than the 2016. I smell green pepper. It has the bite I like - less fruit and more spice. Tobacco notes on the finish. I am a fan.

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  9/23/2020 - msuwine wrote: 94 Points

  The 2015 - along with the 2013 - are the most grumpy Cardinale wines of recent memory. The 2015 has barely budged since I tasted it almost two years ago (10/18 - 94 points), and it needs several more years to find its stride. It is still floral and nuanced and tasty, but it also shows a more astringent and dry streak that many 2015s display now.
  
  Garnet in color and medium in body, the wine offers evocative aromas of sour cherry, ground espresso, dried herbs, and fresh leather. The aromas are ahead of the flavors, which are still coiled and a little tart, with notes of raspberry, pomegranate, and cedar, with a pleasant finish that carries dusty tannins. Blend of 90% Cabernet Sauvignon and 10% Merlot, with 84% mountain fruit (30% Howell, 23% Diamond, 18% Veeder, 13% Spring) and 16% valley (12% Stag’s Leap, 4% St. Helena). 14.5% alcohol.
  
  As with most Cardinale wines, the fruit, structure, and acidity are there, so my guess is that this is just an awkward phase that needs another few years to settle out. In the meantime, open a 2016 (or 2012, or 2009, or 2008), all of which are fantastic right now. 93-94 for now, with upside in 2023 or later.

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