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| Drinking Windows and Values |
| Community Tasting History |
| Community Tasting Notes (average 90.7 pts. and median of 91 pts. in 67 notes) - hiding notes with no text | | | Tasted by Winokdub on 9/16/2023 & rated 91 points: Tight and tannic on the pop n pour but opened up nicely after about an hour. Definitely on the back end of its life but worked well with our steak dinner. (225 views) | | | Tasted by devraj on 12/8/2022 & rated 89 points: Dark red with slight bricking around the rim. A savory nose shows herbs, leather, dark red fruits and hint of licorice. The palate shows a savory edge to the herbal dark red berries, decent acidity and a leather tinged finish. (396 views) | | | Tasted by jlhkiss on 3/23/2021 & rated 93 points: In a lovely window now. Incredibly expressive, floral nose of cherry blossoms, spring violets, lavender, chocolate, and grape hard candy. The palate is medium-full, square, dry, but tangy, bringing a dual surge of sweet blueberry/blackberry with tart cherry/raspberry into a gritty, savory mix of pipe tobacco, dark chocolate, coffee bean, dried leather, and forest floor, that flows into a refined finish. Best with food. Drink 2021-2025. Technical score: 93. Enjoyment score: 93. (1033 views) | | | Tasted by wmccone54 on 11/21/2020: In full disclosure, this is one of my favorite Cabernet producers in Napa. I haven’t checked on this in over six years. At thirteen years, this is just beginning to enter into the mature phase; tertiary characteristics are starting to predominate. Shows a clear, deep ruby color without noticeable signs of bricking. Pronounced aromatic and flavor profile leads with bell pepper and drying celery, followed by cocoa powder, dried red currant, overly ripe, drying blackberry, stewed cherry, dried tobacco, burned charcoal, and crusty, black earth. As like most of Nils Venge’s wines, the mouthfeel is somewhat austere and dry. Structure is still very much in play, with chewy tannin and an acidic backbone showing on the long, very dry finish. This requires “big” food, such as a grilled steak or roasted beef, lamb or pork. Tonight this was pulled from a 55 degree cellar, decanted, and enjoyed with a grilled ribeye, and sautéed spinach and mushrooms. Outstanding wine, should cellar for another 5-7 years, assuming the fruit doesn’t fade...structure is solid. Maintain my earlier 94 point scores. (1010 views) | | | Tasted by devraj on 11/14/2020 & rated 91 points: Dark red in color. Classic but muted aromas of dark red berries, dark olive paste, cocoa, loam and herbs on the nose. Medium-bodied and restrained palate shows sweet and savory dark small red fruits with olive, green herbs, licorice, medium acidity, no tannins and a medium long finish with a hint of oak. (997 views) | | | Tasted by Lion King on 4/18/2020 & rated 92 points: Smooth, big and bold. Nice fruit and tannin balance. Drinking well. (1047 views) | | | Tasted by Y.L. Wino on 3/28/2020: Drinking amazing right now! (874 views) | | | Tasted by jlhkiss on 11/23/2018 & rated 92 points: Brought to dinner party with friends. The magnum was gone in under 30-min. Everyone loved it, though I was a little disappointed compared to our last tasting of this out of the 750ml last year. Still, quality wine. I'd recommend holding onto the magnums until 2022+. Technical score: 93. Enjoyment score: 91. (980 views) | | | Tasted by D3S on 4/30/2018 & rated 90 points: Big, bold, nice mixed berry fruit, spice, earthy and medium finish. Drinking well now, but still has a couple of years left. (1109 views) | | | Tasted by jsjones on 2/10/2018 & rated 93 points: Garnet to brown in color, notes of black fruit. very well balanced. I was quite happy (1269 views) | | | Tasted by Smudge4! on 2/9/2018 & rated 91 points: Beautiful right now. One hour decant. Deep garnet, plum and sour cherry, nice eucalyptus and fine tannins. My last one but this has many years left (1175 views) | | | Tasted by BigRed777 on 6/1/2017 & rated 93 points: Still a fabulous classic Napa Cab. Dark rich fruit and cedar on the nose and palate with a good tannic backbone. Softening a bit as it hits it's mature years but still outstanding to the last drop. (1911 views) | | | Tasted by jlhkiss on 3/19/2017 & rated 94 points: Opened and drank immediately out to dinner with family at West City Kitchen. Took about an hour to open up (recommend decanting). Dark, brooding crimson color. Powerful nose brings black cherries, sweet cassis, blackcurrant, spring violets, cherry tobacco, wild herbs, and spearmint. The palate is medium, round, rich, and concentrated, bringing blackberries, blueberries, raspberries, chocolate caramel, coffee grounds, dried leather, chocolate cherries, mushrooms, and garlic into the finish, which lasts 45+ seconds bringing refined tannins, good acicity, and a silky/velvety feel. This is an outstanding vintage from Niles. I'll save my next bottle for 5+ years and my magnum for even longer. Bravo. Technical score: 94. Enjoyment score: 95. (1738 views) | | | Tasted by sdonahue on 12/11/2016 & rated 94 points: spectacular after an hour decant (1848 views) | | | Tasted by Grouper on 6/10/2015 & rated 94 points: Put through the breather then sampled, let sit for another hour and it was fantastic. By the third hour, it was in the top 10 wines that I have tasted. (2770 views) | | | Tasted by pmk on 6/8/2015 & rated 90 points: Full bodied with ample mix of spicy fruit and toast, chocolate, dark berry, hints of tobacco. Ready now (1545 views) | | | Tasted by Lion King on 9/1/2014 & rated 92 points: Smooth and tasty straight out of the bottle. (3171 views) | | | Tasted by wmccone54 on 8/16/2014 & rated 94 points: There's nothing like a Nils Venge Oakville Cab: aromatic, spicy red currant, mixed dried berries and cherries, dusty tannins, and a sprinkling of dried herbs. Made in the traditional, classic Napa style of bygone years without the jammy, sweet over the top confected concoctions seen in many of fruit-bombs of today. Always consistent and a personal favorite. (2576 views) | | | Tasted by pmk on 8/7/2014 & rated 90 points: consistent with prior note. (1925 views) | | | Tasted by pmk on 7/6/2014 & rated 91 points: Full bodied with ample mix of spicy fruit and toast, chocolate, dark berry, hints of tobacco. Ready now (1963 views) | | | Tasted by JDV.DDSPHD on 2/13/2014 & rated 90 points: This needs another 10 yrs in the cellar. Big nose. I loved that part of it. Rich black fruit. Some cocoa and anise as well. Maybe a touch of bell pepper. Medium to medium heavy body. Nice big tannins with some backbone and structure. After the fruit rushes forward you are rewarded with a long finish. (3008 views) | | | Tasted by awineo on 7/1/2013 & rated 88 points: This one is a disappointment for the price. (2503 views) | | | Tasted by awineo on 5/14/2013 & rated 87 points: Tried again. Still just not up to the price... not close.
Not bad, just not a good value for a drinker. (2493 views) | | | Tasted by awineo on 4/25/2013 & rated 89 points: Decent but overpriced. (1818 views) | | | Tasted by awineo on 4/7/2013 & rated 87 points: Not impressed. This was a medium priced wine that drank like one for half the price. It only sat a week, so maybe it was in bottle shock. I sure hope so since I have 5 left. (1473 views) | | | Only displaying the 25 most recent notes - click to see all notes for this wine... |
| By Stephen Tanzer
Vinous, May/June 2012, IWC Issue #162
(Saddleback Cellars Cabernet Sauvignon Oakville Napa Valley) Subscribe to see review text. |
NOTE: Scores and reviews are the property of Vinous. (manage subscription channels) |
| Saddleback Cellars Producer website
Located in the heart of Napa Valley, Saddleback Cellars was founded by acclaimed winemaker Nils Venge. Nils got his start in Napa Valley in 1970 and has been creating award winning wines at Saddleback since 1981. He is known as the "King of Cabs" due to being the first American to receive a 100 point score from wine-critic extraordinaire Robert Parker Jr. for making a 1985 Cabernet Sauvignon.
Saddleback sits on Money Road, a dead-end lane in Oakville, a renowned Cabernet growing A.V.A. (American Vinicultural Area). Our first love is Cabernet Sauvignon; although we make a variety of wonderful wines both from our estate vineyard in Oakville and from around the valley. Some of these include; Chardonnay, Pinot Blanc, Pinot Grigio, Merlot and Zinfandel – and even smaller lots, made especially for our Posse Wine Club, which include: Marsanne, Grenache Blanc, Charbono, Petit Verdot and Cabernet Franc to name of few.Cabernet SauvignonCabernet Sauvignon is probably the most famous red wine grape variety on Earth. It is rivaled in this regard only by its Bordeaux stablemate Merlot, and its opposite number in Burgundy, Pinot Noir. From its origins in Bordeaux, Cabernet has successfully spread to almost every winegrowing country in the world. It is now the key grape variety in many first-rate New World wine regions, most notably Napa Valley, Coonawarra and Maipo Valley. Wherever they come from, Cabernet Sauvignon wines always seem to demonstrate a handful of common character traits: deep color, good tannin structure, moderate acidity and aromas of blackcurrant, tomato leaf, dark spices and cedarwood.
Used as frequently in blends as in varietal wines, Cabernet Sauvignon has a large number of common blending partners. Apart from the obvious Merlot and Cabernet Franc, the most prevalent of these are Malbec, Petit Verdot and Carmenere (the ingredients of a classic Bordeaux Blend), Shiraz (in Australia's favorite blend) and in Spain and South America, a Cabernet – Tempranillo blend is now commonplace. Even the bold Tannat-based wines of Madiran are now generally softened with Cabernet SauvignonUSAAmerican wine has been produced since the 1500s, with the first widespread production beginning in New Mexico in 1628. Today, wine production is undertaken in all fifty states, with California producing 84% of all U.S. wine. The continent of North America is home to several native species of grape, including Vitis labrusca, Vitis riparia, Vitis rotundifolia, and Vitis vulpina, but the wine-making industry is based almost entirely on the cultivation of the European Vitis vinifera, which was introduced by European settlers. With more than 1,100,000 acres (4,500 km2) under vine, the United States is the fourth-largest wine producing country in the world, after Italy, Spain, and France.California2021 vintage: "Unlike almost all other areas of the state, the Russian River Valley had higher than normal crops in 2021, which has made for a wine of greater generosity and fruit forwardness than some of its stablemates." - Morgan Twain-Peterson Napa Valley Napa Valley Wineries and Wine (Napa Valley Vintners)Napa ValleySt. Helena |
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