2004 Cosentino Winery The Poet

Community Tasting Notes (19) Avg Score: 90.9 points

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  9/5/2021 - oldwines wrote: 92 Points

  Decanted for several hours. Lovely soft but bright Cabernet Sauvignon dominant blend. Opaque garnet color with just a hint of bricking, otherwise fresh and young looking. Nose shows off some oak derived scents of vanilla and tobacco. Plate has very good acidity, shockingly high actually for a 21st century Napa Cab, and pleasant nearly integrated tannins. Palate has rich dark fruit like black plum, boysenberry and cassis and then some earthy elements like tobacco and mushroom. Really well put together and aging nicely. Moderately long finish. Perfect with a grilled ribeye steak. Plenty of life left, should drink well through the end of the decade or so…

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  11/16/2019 - oldwines Likes this wine: 93 Points

  Acquired in the 2012 clearance sale when the winery changed hands and in my cellar since. Blend of Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc and Merlot in a bit of a right bank Bordeaux style. Barrel aged for 27 months. Labeled at 14.4% ABV. Double decanted at 11am before taking to an afternoon engagement party. Fairly large amount of very fine sediment, needs to be carefully decanted. Translucent medium garnet with ever so slight brick edge. Nose has eucalyptus, menthol, bright black cherry and chocolate. Very plush on the palate, yet still with some unresolved tannins and bright acidity. Great structure. Slightly lifted, attractive VA element. Earthy, black cherry, black plum and mushroom dominate the palate. Very long on the finish. 93+ and by no means near the end of its life.

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  5/5/2019 - The Drunken Cyclist Likes this wine: 93 Points

  Retail $65. One of the problems (if you can call it that) with having too much wine? You tend to forget what you drink. That was the case here, as I drank two bottles of this wine in rapid succession--and it is clear I could have waited at least a bit between the two. Lovely nose of ripe blackberry with hints of vanilla and green pepper. Mmmm. The palate is perhaps even better. Wonderful. Still quite fruity with integrated tannins and a whole bunch of goodness. Whoa. thedrunkencyclist.com

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  1/14/2019 - The Drunken Cyclist Likes this wine: 92 Points

  I have been resisting opening my decades-old bottles of Cosentino. Why hold on to them? Well, the winery is a shell of what it used to be when founder Mitch Cosentino was at the helm. This was the first wine club I ever joined and was my gateway drug to Napa Valley wines. Now? Meh. Then? Whoa. Great fruit, rich body and depth, a really fantastic wine and one of the original “Meritage" wines. Only a few left. Sob. thedrunkencyclist.com

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  5/10/2017 - The Drunken Cyclist Likes this wine: 92 Points

  I bought three of these nearly a decade ago and this is the first that I have opened. The Poet was my gateway to California wines as I was introduced to Mitch Cosentino at a wine dinner by a former girlfriend (don’t ask) and I was hooked. I instantly joined the Cosentino Wine Club and started making regular trips to Napa from Sausalito where I was living at the time. My wine repertoire has expanded a bit since then, but I will always have a soft spot for the Poets that Mitch actually made (he was forced out of his own winery around the time of the financial crisis). The wine? The first wine to labeled “Meritage” in the U.S., it is a blend of Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, and Merlot. Inky dark with blackberry and cassis, and splashes of black and green pepper. Still great fruit on the palate with impeccable balance, this wine was simply stellar. thedrunkencyclist.com

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