| Community Tasting Notes (average 90.2 pts. and median of 90 pts. in 29 notes) - hiding notes with no text |
| | Tasted by brigcampbell on 6/24/2023: Blind; definitely thought this was from Napa and probably Cabernet Sauvignon dominated.
Dark, brooding, big structure. Really enjoyable. (430 views) |
| | Tasted by lplenz on 4/8/2017 & rated 89 points: This wine has really held up well! Smooth as silk. (1623 views) |
| | Tasted by Michael Baskett on 3/4/2017 & rated 86 points: Closed up when first decanted with high alcohol, cherries and Cabernet franc on the nose and mouth. Still opaque with rim just turning. Surprisingly little tannin, certainly not enough to go the distance. Lot's of glycerin. Taste is well melded but not complex. A good wine for perhaps rack of lamb with rosemary or a Beef Stroganoff. It will let the food shine while providing a good solid foil to the more complex food flavors. I would drink it up in the next couple of years.
1/2 hour after decanting nose has less alcohol and showing some plum and prune but flavor unchanged. Good balance but not a great wine. (1572 views) |
| | Tasted by Coachron13 on 6/23/2015 flawed bottle: This one had turned, brownish color and sour taste. Down the drain. (1870 views) |
| | Tasted by Coachron13 on 1/22/2015 & rated 88 points: We so wanted to love this since the 2001 Chappellet CF is one of our favorites, but it just wasn't to be. Definitely past its peak, lots of earthy funk but muted on the fruit. Drinking mostly secondary flavors right now rather than primary. Still have one more in the cellar, but no reason to wait on it. (1960 views) |
| | Tasted by Old Course 72 on 7/17/2011 & rated 92 points: Light nose, mellow fruit, deep varietal notes with extended finish. Delightful, mouth filling and mature. (3479 views) |
| | Tasted by psoals on 5/13/2011 & rated 92 points: Just a superb example of what Cab Franc from Napa can be. (2902 views) |
| | Tasted by wineretriever on 4/13/2011 & rated 90 points: Would never guess Cab Franc. No green, just fruit and spice. Currant, cinnamon, allspice. This has some time left on it, but I'm not sure it is going to get better. Great wine, not a great representation of the varietal. (2862 views) |
| | Tasted by cookie7 on 4/4/2011 & rated 89 points: Note after 24 hours. Dark red fruit on the nose. Nice fruit with hints of vanilla on the finish. A bit of heat on the finish. decent wine but bad QPR. (2747 views) |
| | Tasted by huberww on 1/17/2011: K and I enjoyed this one tonight though quite not so much as the French Cuvee Danae 2003 (also a cab franc) that we also enjoyed with our roast chicken meal. Both are definitely food wines. This one has plenty of Pritchard Hill fruit on the nose and palate. Very rich and after a few hours of air seems to be showing some age. (2757 views) |
| | Tasted by ivsimler on 1/9/2011 & rated 90 points: Delicious! (2297 views) |
| | Tasted by psoals on 9/4/2010 & rated 92 points: in a wondeful place, drink now. (2469 views) |
| | Tasted by tplskylrk on 7/2/2010 & rated 92 points: What a difference a year or so makes. Dark & dusty looking. Beautiful nose, can smell the white milk chocolate. Rich, velvet, creamy dark red fruit. Big in the mouth and long ligering finish. Killer effort & result. All the Oak seems to have integrated. Drank at Galetto's. (2757 views) |
| | Tasted by Venezia on 5/8/2010 & rated 92 points: Wow. What a difference a night makes. Initially still very tight after 2 hrs. Drank night two. Dark berry, cocoa, pepper come through. Great nose. Wow (2611 views) |
| | Tasted by WI WineLover on 4/23/2010 & rated 91 points: Deep color...full body, great finish ---- went well with hard jack cheese (from Bella Cheese in Sonoma) and also went especially well with dark chocolate. (2573 views) |
| | Tasted by Fishboy on 11/22/2009 & rated 90 points: Similar notes. (2751 views) |
| | Tasted by Fishboy on 9/21/2009 & rated 90 points: Well balance with dark fruit and cherry notes and a touch of spice. (2906 views) |
| | Tasted by curtr on 8/14/2009 & rated 90 points: Nice spice. (2921 views) |
| | Tasted by tplskylrk on 3/13/2009 & rated 89 points: Deep garnet color. Great nose. Dark Cherry & toasted oak, cedar, bit of spice in there. Mocha dominates the fruity palate with a bit too much oak holding it together. Did get a little of the green pepper noted as well as the bakers chocolate. Tannins are fine, cleansing. Good glycerin giving it a rich velvet mouthfeel. This is close to a really excellent wine. Damn the oak. - 3 pts for the baby oak monster. There is beautiful fruit in there, hope that the oaks fades & the fruit develops.Day 2. Richer. fuller. More bakers choc., less green notes. Deeper fruit finish. This need 12 more months to enter a better place, oak should mellow, then consume for 2-4 years. (3371 views) |
| | Tasted by curtr on 2/19/2009 & rated 90 points: A tasty treat. A better example of how Cabernet Franc is ment to taste. Try again in the late fall. (3064 views) |
| | Tasted by cvvhrn on 4/27/2008 & rated 90 points: Hints of bakers chocolate and berries with dark coffee and pommegranet on the palate. Nice finsh as well (3250 views) |
| | Tasted by LPskeleton on 6/23/2007 & rated 92 points: Cab Franc??? not the out of balance type im used to. Just a touch of green pepper surrounds some beautiful fruit. Dark currant like aromas mingle with the bell peppers. On the palate soft and supple with dark fruit flavors great mouth watering acidity and tannic structure frame the fruit. Medium tannic finish. Add steak and this is a wonderful evening. (3643 views) |
| | Tasted by tanglenet on 3/24/2007: At a tasting at the Wine Club SF. Quick notes: very soft assault, medium body weight, dark fruits with a dry tannic finish. Very good. This was my #2 wine of the flight with the Shafer Cabernet 1.5 #3 and the Von Strasser Diamond Mtn #1. (3720 views) |
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| Chappellet Producer website2004 Chappellet Cabernet FrancWinery notes: "...The 2004 release presents aromas that are lively and refined, with cherry, cassis and spice seamlessly integrated into layers of mocha and sweet oak. Classic Cabernet Franc flavors of red fruit, exotic spice and dried herbs are displayed in a dimensional framework of elegant tannins.
This wine is aged completely in French oak and about 60% are new barrels. These barrels, paired with the intense flavors of Pritchard Hill grapes, produce seamlessness and delth in the wine. Only 500 cases produced."Cabernet Franc Varietal character (Appellation America) | Wines & Vines articleUSAAmerican 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 |
