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Oakville AVA tasting
67 Pall Mall
Tasted May 11, 2023 by Joshvoulters with 201 views
Introduction
Walkaround trade tasting for Oakville AVA producers. A great opportunity to try a variety of wines in a style with which I'm mostly unfamiliar. It's fair to say I had some preconceptions about how much I'd enjoy the wines on show based on my limited experience and, if anything, those preconceptions were more than reinforced. While I can objectively understand why people enjoy this style of wine, it absolutely doesn't do anything for me.
On the whole I found that many wines prioritised smoothness, gloss and richness over complexity, freshness and drinkability. The term 'trophy wines' seems very fitting here- some are very expensive wines which fit a narrow archetype and seem more to be about representing a style than providing distinctiveness and pleasure (to my Eurocentric palate, at least).
Which isn't to say there weren't some really enjoyable examples- I don't see myself paying the cost of entry to drink them but I'm pleased to have had the opportunity.
Flight 1 (3 notes)
Red
2014 Detert Family Vineyards Cabernet Franc East Block Oakville
92 points
Very appealing: a touch of old-world delicacy and aromatic lift alongside what is of course a relatively rich and saturated blue and dark fruit profile. A touch of cedar and green pepper, powdery tannins, smooth with good length to the finish.
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Red
2019 Detert Family Vineyards Cabernet Franc East Block Oakville
90 points
A lush new world cab franc. It's nice, it's tasty, but it's quite one-note: luxurious, rich and smooth but without any complexity (albeit it's very young).
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Red
2019 Detert Family Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon Oakville
93 points
A subtle cedar note, rose petal, mint. Quite contained with a balance of red and dark fruit. Not a blockbuster on the palate - there's some sweetness and a medium to full body: the palate is actually a little dilute based upon the assertiveness of the nose, but actually that's no bad thing: certainly drinkable. A slight tinny note on a good length finish - but generally this is a slightly dialled back rendition and all the better for it, allowing for some delineation and complexity.
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Flight 2 (1 note)
Red
2019 Morlet Family Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon Cœur de Vallée
92 points
Deep saturated raspberry, blackberry, mint and sweet oak spice. Round, full and plump on the palate, smooth and without any rough edges. Liquorice on a lingering finish. Very enjoyable in this style.
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Flight 3 (2 notes)
Red
2005 Opus One
88 points
I'll nail my colours to the mast here - I really didn't get Opus One. This is very developed for an 18 year old premium cab, slight bricking at the rim and tertiary notes on the nose. Cassis, cedar and some rubber, it's medium to full bodied with very smooth, seamless tannins. Not hugely intense in flavour profile and gives the impression of being on the downslope. Nothing much of interest seems to have developed with age - really quite by the numbers.
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Red
2019 Opus One
86 points
Not my bag. It starts pretty well with a nose of rich currants, cassis, powerfully concentrated with some notes of sweet tobacco and liquorice. The oak is relatively subtle but it's just way too plush, glossy, sweet and confected on the palate. I'm really not sure how you drink more than a taster of this- I get some candied notes, bubblegum. The tannins are polished to within an inch of their lives- it's kind of like grown up fruit juice I guess? No doubt this is excellent fruit, vinified expensively, but it's just not for me. I want complexity, distinctiveness, freshness, and this is the polar opposite on all counts. I totally understand that it works for other people and more power to them, but it's just not what I want to drink.
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Comments (1)
Flight 4 (1 note)
Red
2013 Ghost Block Cabernet Sauvignon Estate
90 points
Some nice complexity and balance developing after a decade. It's still a bit sweet and jammy for my preference, but some autumnal, earthy, mulchy notes are coming to the fore. Quite sweet and unremarkable on the palate: smooth with a hint of grip on the back end, and subtle acidity providing a touch of freshness
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Flight 5 (2 notes)
Red
2016 Dalla Valle Cabernet Sauvignon
92 points
I liked the Dalla Valle wines - a little rough round the edges and characterful, which was a tonic in a room full of polish and gloss. This has around 20% cab franc in the blend and it has a marked impact: violet, rose and a hint of green leafy notes provide interest and complexity. Some sweet spice and sweet dark fruits- cherry, blackberry and blackcurrant- which just about stay away from being jammy. Some grain to the tannins still, ample acidity and it's still mostly primary - so you'd bet on this continuing to develop very nicely.
Red
2016 Dalla Valle Maya
92 points
Smooth, rich, aromatic. 60/40 CS/CF. Waves of smooth chewy tannins on the palate, a touch of green pepper freshening the saturated fruit profile. Good acidity beneath a sweet, full body. Really quite charming.
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Flight 6 (2 notes)
Red
2018 Heitz Cellar Cabernet Sauvignon
93 points
Big fan of Heitz, and quite a distinctive style in a room full of Oakville producers. Saturated red fruit profile: some cherry, raspberry, mint, green pepper and licquorice. Fresh acidity, a medium/full body, smooth tannins. The length on the finish isn't anything to write home about but you feel this has good potential to fill out and develop complexity with age.
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Red
2009 Heitz Cellar Cabernet Sauvignon
92 points
According to the producer this is one of those times the vintage works to undermine the house style - and you can see that this maybe doesn't have the dialled back freshness and balance of the '18 I also tried. However they've still done a great job - deeply saturated and heady on the nose without being an archetypical 'big Napa cab'. Some savoury, animal notes along with ripe red and blue fruit. Definite signs of tertiary development but the overall impression is of a wine that's still squat, coiled and waiting to unfurl slowly. Powerful, chiseled tannins, dense and compact on the palate. This has years to go.
Flight 7 (2 notes)
Red
2019 Robert Mondavi Winery Cabernet Sauvignon The Reserve To-Kalon Vineyard
93 points
So I was expecting to feel about Mondavi the way I do when I taste Banfi Brunellos - acknowledging that they're competent but frankly quite flat and uninspiring while smaller producers make the really good stuff. But I was totally wrong - I thought these wines were super. Really bracing acidity, leafy blackcurrant and floral lift. There's some grainy grip to the tannins. This really feels like a wine that will age with grace and is quite European in its attitude (although the fruit profile could really only be Napa). Really good.
Red
2010 Robert Mondavi Winery Cabernet Sauvignon Reserve
94 points
From Jeroboam. Autumnal, minty, stewed red and dark fruit. Some charcuterie, cedar and green pepper notes. Lovely fresh acidity, lots of tannins. Bright, fruity, not a huge wine - very well balanced and really classy. Lovely stuff!
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Flight 8 (2 notes)
Red
2019 VHR Cabernet Sauvignon Vine Hill Ranch
85 points
A touch of mint and tarragon, saturated dark fruit on the nose. So far so Napa. It falls apart on the palate: quite savoury, spiky tannins, and really noticeable heat. Not a pleasant experience.
4 people found this helpful
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Red
2009 VHR Cabernet Sauvignon Vine Hill Ranch
86 points
The nose is interesting: black tea, earth, dark fruit and liquorice. On the palate (as with the '19) it's no fun at all. Chunky, blocky tannins and spiky acidity throw this right out of balance. No thanks.
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Flight 9 (1 note)
Red
2019 Peter Michael Au Paradis
88 points
Red fruit, sweet tobacco, liquorice and a woody edge. But it feels indistinct, middle of the road. Not a huge amount of concentration on the palate, nothing in the way of delineation or complexity, some heat on the finish. It's fine.
Addendum: I just looked up the price and had a good laugh.
Addendum: I just looked up the price and had a good laugh.
Flight 10 (1 note)
Red
2019 Groth Cabernet Sauvignon
91 points
A bit sweet for my preference but it hits all the right notes for a wine of this style. Raspberry, fig, blackberries, great acidity and a satisfying roughness and depth to the tannins. Spherical on the palate, good length to the finish.
Flight 11 (2 notes)
Red
2013 Tierra Roja Vineyard & Winery Cabernet Sauvignon Tierra Roja
90 points
Felt like a great comparison to the '19 vintage: extremely similar in aromatic and flavour profile but this demonstrates more balance, tannic integration. Only downside is that the finish is both drying and slightly abrupt.
Red
2019 Tierra Roja Vineyard & Winery Cabernet Sauvignon Tierra Roja
84 points
Red and blue fruited, a touch of VA, charcuterie, rose and spice. Interesting and appealing nose. But crikey is it sweet on the palate, almost sickly. I'd say gloopy too. Here it really falls apart with a balsamic character, it's hot and grippy with mouth-coating tannins. A bit of an assault really. No thanks.
Flight 12 (1 note)
Red
2019 Ulysses Oakville
83 points
Really not my thing. The nose is dusty and a bit acrid. Very sweet on the palate with spiky tannins and an abrupt finish. Never again.