April 26, 2024 - Color (10/10): Inky dark purple with watery rim
Nose (25/25): Seductive vanilla, cinnamon, hint of spice
Palate (26/30): Velvety smooth red cherry up front with some burn from the alcohol in the middle that hits the back of my throat with a strange vinegar 'twang' that lingers. Also some tart red berry. Almost watery in the mid-palate before coming on with a strong tart red berry finish.
Overall (32/35): This is good but not great. Given the name and price point, I would have expected more. The nose is SO alluring and yet the palate just falls a little flat. As it opens, a delicate melange of red berries comes through but it lacks a layered complexity I'd expect of a wine of this caliber.
May 13, 2023 - This wine can drink well for another 2 decades, and in even the hard core Napa drinkers found it overpowering after 90 min slow ox + 60 min decant. Shows great promise, however, and we will try again in a number of years.
Night one:
Ruby in glass, a beautiful burgundy really.
Nose med+ intensity of vanilla, oak, blackberry. Still very young.
Palate Med+ acidity, med tannins integrated but still rough. Full body. Med+ finish. Med+ flavor intensity of predominantly blackberry. Med+ finish.
Night two: Alcohol working it’s way into the wine and everything is settling down now. Nose remains oaky but now more chocolate and coffee coming through in addition to the vanilla. Palate is softer now. Raspberry in addition to the blackberry. The spiciness has subsided. More supple.
Night three: tbd
February 9, 2023 - Napa 2023: the quieter version; 2/6/2023-2/11/2023 (Napa/Sonoma California): The wine which is usually my favorite although I don’t think it’s quite as bright showing as the Vecina or Pluribus both of whom were just spot on. This is still nice though. Fresh style with red currants and a bit of brightness. Evolving a lot in the glass. Always enjoyable.
September 18, 2022 - Distinguished by herbal notes on the nose. Dark fruits. Velvety tannins. Excellent concentration and persistence. Early drinking window.
October 29, 2021 - This is really lovely. Was in a cellar where for part of the pandemic there wasn't temp control and so a bit of a concern around it, but this was drinking very well. It's certainly new world style and deeper red fruits, but more moderate and balanced. Drinking well.
September 9, 2021 - Decanted over cocktails. Pure and soft blackcurrant and loamy earth with a midpalate that brightened after about two hours, then continued to evolve with chocolate and charred earth notes. Not sure I would recommend a long decant as the evolution was interesting and the structure started to dissolve toward the end. In any case this is a resounding success for the Bond aim of terroir-driven single-vineyard Cabernets and is drinking well now although it may continue to improve with more cellaring.
June 24, 2020 - This wine is in a great drinking window. It certainly has a lot of life left, but it is utterly satisfying right now. Notes of blackberry, rich cassis, mushrooms, asian spices and fragrant earth on the nose. Super refined on the palate, with exceptionally fine grained tannins, silky mouthfeel and a weightless elegance that captivates. Excellent complexity at this stage, with some tertiary notes mixing in with the primary fruit to make for a really well rounded experience. The finish is absolutely epic and off the charts long.
May 22, 2020 - This wine was on point. Deep purple black color but beautiful. Perfect weight. Not quite full bodied. Aromas of black tea leaves, violist and earth. Great texture. Silky. Black currant fruit and plum fruit. A noticeable lack of oak which I loved, allowing the fruit to shine through. A note of tobacco leaf as well. So good. Finish was only thing that kept it from 96/97 type of score. Highest recommendation
January 10, 2020 - Another Year, Another Napa (aka Winter in Wineland IV); 1/5/2020-1/11/2020 (Napa/Sonoma California): Hand soap on the nose which originally made me a touch skeptical, but on the palate it's all floral and red fruits and this really nice structure and back bone to it. More time and the fruit starts to get a bit sweeter but in a nice, fresh way. I didn't get as much of the iron/ferrous character as I have in other years, but definitely enjoyable. Probably my favorite of the vineyards although it's splitting hairs as they're all great.
February 3, 2019 - Sensual and silky in the glass, the 2012 St. Eden comes across as a bit subdued and even light, with less concentration and fewer shades of dimension than most other vintages. Perhaps the 2012 is in a bit of a closed phase. We will see.