Screaming Eagle Showdown

A group of us decided to put the Screaming Eagle to the test and see if it is worth the very hefty price tag relative to other high-quality Napa and Washington State Cabernets/Blends. We purchased a 1999 Screaming Eagle from the Rusty Staub Auction and then conducted a blind tasting of nine 1999 Cabernets/Blends from Napa, with the Quilceda Creek being the only exception. All wines were decanted for about three hours. We tasted and scored each wine, with all scores privately recorded so that there was no influence on scores from other tasters. We totaled the average rating for each wine. After going through all nine wines, we conducted a second round of tasting and scoring in the same fashion. At the end, of the second tasting, we each identified our top three wines. Along the way we attempted to guess which wines were which, with reasonable success. Here is the line-up:

Screaming Eagle
Opus One
Clogin Cariad
Pride Reserve
Araujo Eisele Vineyard
Phelps Insignia
Beringer Private Reserve
Quilceda Creek
Dunn Howell Mountain

My tasting notes and scores are included

• 1999 Opus One 92 Points

  USA, California, Napa Valley

  Part of a blind tasting of 1999 Cabernets from the US. The French influence showed very clearly with this wine, and therefore was easily identified. I found it restrained and tight, with a strong nose of pencil shavings and leather. Soft tannins still evident. Hard to know whether it was too early or too late. Came bottom half of the tasting.

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• 1999 Quilceda Creek Cabernet Sauvignon 92 Points

  USA, Washington

  Part of a blind tasting of 1999 US Cabernets. This was the second wine. Much riper than the first (which turned out to be Opus One), with a gorgeous nose. A bit more restrained on the palate, with tannins that are quite evident. I'd say it will get much better with more time in the cellar.

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• 1999 Colgin Cariad 94 Points

  USA, California, Napa Valley

  Part of a blind tasting of 1999 US Cabernets. In a virtual tie as my top wine along with the Screaming Eagle and the Insignia. Showed much better for me the second time through, as my score moved to 94 from 90. Has the wow factor, consistent with my note from five years ago. Back then I suggested a decade or more, and today I'd say it still has a decade or more. A bargain relative to the Screaming Eagle!

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• 1999 Dunn Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon Howell Mountain 89 Points

  USA, California, Napa Valley, Howell Mountain

  Part of a blind tasting of 1999 US Cabernets. I had this rated higher the first time through. Seemed to fade as the evening wore on. Most other tasters had this rated much higher. Noticeable barnyard nose, rich fruit on the palate, with tannins very much in evidence. Might be early for this wine, given the tannic structure and the reputation of the producer. Hold.

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• 1999 Araujo Estate Cabernet Sauvignon Eisele Vineyard 92 Points

  USA, California, Napa Valley

  Part of a blind tasting of 1999 US Cabernets. I scored this a bit higher the first time through. Seemed to fade a bit as the evening wore on. Others had it muh higher. Seemed to be the wine with the greatest variation among tasters. Unfortunately, I didn't take formal notes on this one. I thought it was disappointing given the price point. Came in middle of the pack.

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• 1999 Joseph Phelps Insignia 95 Points

  USA, California, Napa Valley

  Part of a blind tasting of 1999 US Cabernets. This was in my top three, and virtually tied with the Screaming Eagle and Colgin Cariad. A massive, dark and brooding wine. I correctly guessed as Insignia. Drinking well with a good decant, but has a decade or more ahead of it.

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• 1999 Pride Mountain Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon Reserve 92 Points

  USA, California, Napa Valley

  Part of a blind tasting of 1999 US Cabernets. This was one of the final wines served. Some debate about whether it was corked, but I am fairly sensitive to TCA and did not get even a hint. In fact, the wine improved greatly over the course of the evening, and by the end had moved into the top half. I thought it was the QC. Medium body, soft tannins, fruit more cherry and black cherry. Drink or hold. Needs a long decant.

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• 1999 Beringer Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon Private Reserve 82 Points

  USA, California, Napa Valley

  Part of a blind tasting of 1999 US Cabernets. I guessed this correctly as the Beringer, only because it was so clearly not in the same class as the other wines we tasted. A funky, herbaceous nose and very green on the palate. I thought perhaps the bottle was flawed in some way, but one taster had it as their top wine. May have suffered by comparison with some big boys.

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• 1999 Screaming Eagle Cabernet Sauvignon 95 Points

  USA, California, Napa Valley, Oakville

  Part of a blind tasting of US Cabernets. This was the last of nine wines. Very clearly a special wine, which I guessed was the Colgin Cariad. Very ripe, beautiful blend of fruit, some exotic spice, with a long finish. Lived up to expectations, and it was top-rated by one-half of the tasters. I had what turned out to be the Colgin Cariad as my top wine. Based on other wines tasted from the same vintage, this is poor QPR. Delivers the goods, but so do others at a much lower price point.

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In the end, pedigree showed, as the wines that got the most top three votes were Screaming Eagle, Colgin Cariad, and the Insignia. The Colgin and Screaming Eagle both had averge scores of 95, with the Insignia just behind at 94. The Beringer reserve did not fare well, coming in last with an average score in the mid 80s. One taster, however, rated it their top wine. The Araujo also was disappointing, coming in the bottom half despite its high price point.

In the end, we confirmed the qulaity of the Screaming Eagle as a high-quality wine, but we all agreed we would never pay the price relative to the much cheaper alternatives we tasted. The Colgin proved to be a relative bargain!