This was my last bottle of of the 97 vintage. The cork was fully intact and like all previous bottles, there was significant sediment bottle which was quickly cleaned up after passing it through a filter. Initial PNP, was pretty closed on the nose but had a musty, earthy component. Beautiful deep brick color and an smooth earthy flavor (tobacco and leather).
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Aging very well, no hint of going over the hill, very smooth and layered. Drinking well right now and will probably hold for another 5 years. Enjoyed with a roast loin of Pork and grilled asparagus, great accompaniment. I wish I had more but, alas, all good things must end.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
My go-to wine for a special occasion. Pulled from a 55 degree cellar; and poured through a Vacuvin. Pristine cork, no visible signs of bricking. Sediment in the neck and shoulder of the bottle. Medium body. Beautifully aromatic and intoxicating nose. Spicy red currant, tobacco, leather, and red flowers. Palate dominated by earth tones, but there's still enough red fruit, tannic structure and acidity to support enjoying this with a chargrilled ribeye steak. Long, persistent finish. Thumbs up purchase and kudos to the producer!
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Nice nose of aged cab, on the palate this bottle was fading and hanging on or dear life. Fruit fading and becoming shrill and acidic, also a lot of green. I like lean cabs but this one was too far gone,wife hated it.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Popped and poured but should have decanted for sediment. Nose of black cherry, black currant, slightly vegetal and earthy with some cedar cigar box and tobacco notes. Similar flavors on the palate with medium to medium+ acid. Tannins fully integrated, medium body. I would probably drink up if holding any while there is still some fruit left.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
I was somewhat expecting this to be well into decline; there's been some slight bottle variation in the prior bottles over the last three years. Much to my pleasant surprise, this is still going strong!
Pulled from a 55 degree cellar; and decanted. Pristine cork, no visible signs of bricking. Sediment in the neck and shoulder of the bottle. Medium body. Beautifully aromatic and intoxicating nose. Spicy red currant, tobacco, leather, and red flowers. Palate dominated by earth tones, but there's still enough red fruit, tannic structure and acidity to support enjoying this with a chargrilled ribeye steak. Long, persistent finish. Thumbs up purchase and kudos to the producer!
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Very similar to last time I had this around two years ago. Decanted for about an hour. Great nose of cherries and cassis. On the palate, cassis again with a little pepper leading to a long finish. However, this wine started to fall apart after an hour in the glass and became only a shell of what it once was. Nose was still great, but the profile was quite diminished on the palate. Drink up.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
This bottle was easily the best of 4 consumed over the last 2 years. We were smitten with it. Perfect cork, not much sediment, mild/moderate bricking, less herb on the nose and more developed dark berry fruit. If only they all could have been close to this good. Still lots of earth and paired well with mushroom mac n cheese with a thick colorado lamb loin chop. Makes me wonder if this wine was in a dumb phase and is peaking now?
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Drinking so well right now. 1 hr decant. Nose is full of every note I've ever taken. It has a nice sage component right now that I've never noticed. Palate is great with highlites of cola and chocolate cherries with a long long finish. Dee-lish.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Really enjoying this bottle. Reminiscent of previous notes, but I'll jot a few current notes down. 45 min decant. Nose is chocolate and cherries and tobacco and sweetness. Slight floral perfume also. Cherries on the palate, veggie component, mineral/chalkyness (slight), chocolate, dirt, slight spice. Smooth, light-medium bodied, long finish.
It seems every bottle of this stuff is a gamble for me, but I have one left and I hope it's as great as this one.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
A mature Cabernet showing some slight bricking. Spicy red currant, savory plums, wet pine needles, and lots of earthy tobacco. Structure is holding this together. Very nice, but fruit has really started to fade over the last year. Given the $25 price point this was a great opportunity to checkout an aged and mature Napa Cabernet.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
Out of the nine bottles I got last time, 5 were dropping an overwhelming amount of sediment and made the experience less than pleasurable. This is the second bottle that is spot on delicious. The difference is in the accumulation on the neck and shoulder of the bottle. If it is solid, then almost nothing has broken off and will throw almost no sediment. If it is spotty and lacking in uniformity, there are tons of chunks floating around in there and it will fill each glass with grit.
Nose is outstanding. Campfire, black licorice, currant, chocolate, cherries, funk, and much more. Palate is cherries galore. Some cola, mint, touch of espresso, slight spice, old wood. Silky smooth, this bottle is disappearing. This is why I bought this stuff. 8+ second finish.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Delightful - this is holding up just fine, at least lying down at 58F. Plenty of sediment. Presented pretty much the same as several other bottles I've enjoyed the last 12 months: aged notes like leather plus just enough red and darker fruit, in very nice balance and with the complexity you want in a cab with some age. With both tannins and fruit pretty well mellowed, this is so much more versatile with food than a typical young cab - went great with a variety of dinners over three days. Held up nicely over that span; if other bottles are seriously downhill, there must be variation either from the source or in storage. Last of my '97s but I'm happy to have some '96s on the way now.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
I think my best bottles of this are behind me. This one hasn't thrown any sediment. Brilliant nose, palate falls flat with some cardboard and metallic finish.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
My last bottle of this wine. The first two were excellent - I rated both at 90. In the seven months since drinking the last bottle, this has really gone downhill. Even more sediment, it clogged my filter. Not pleasant on the nose, and leaves an aftertaste that I'm not sure how to describe. Threw away 2/3 of the bottle.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Dark crimson color. Some currant and dark red fruit notes on the nose along with some earthy, barnyard notes, a bit of green veggies, tobacco and cedar. Really nice mature cab nose. Similar flavors on the palate with a really nice mix of cassis and tomato sort of going on with a bit of oak on the back end. Fine, sweet tannins and medium acidity. Finished smooth as well. Really impressive showing from this wine and it is unbelievable that the wine is 16 years old. It drinks like it is half that old.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
Tasting 9/28/13: Color: brown/red or brackish with a lot of sediment. Orange was also used to describe the color. Nose: sweet, deep woody, tobacco, blueberry, raspberry, leather, cedar Palate: very smooth, strawberry, mildly fruity
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Cherries and pungent tobacco on the nose with some slight barnyard and dried leaves. Not quite as exciting of a nose as I remember. Palate is very nice with some menthol, cola, cherry, chocolate, licorice, and probably more. Nice complexity in the palate.
Wine seems to be showing a little thinner mouthfeel than usual.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Blood to brickish red in the glass bordering on orange towards the edges. Nose is excellent as always. So pungent, complex. Sends my brain running in all directions when I try to pick things out. Deep, sweet, mint, funk. Tobacco, cherry, menthol, forest floor, rosemary, licorice, bbq sauce.
Palate enters with a slight mineral/dirt/herb component, like a raw sprig of some unoffensive herb just plucked. Transitions to cherry, cola, and coffee and chocolate notes that define the tannins in this wine that are still plenty abundant. Slight licorice towards the finish as well. Medium finish is around 10 sec.
Fruit is definitely moving toward the background on the palate. Wine enters with a slight edge of acid, but the tannins come sweeping through on the mid palate to balance the wine out. Acid stays present and competes with the tannin through the finish. Not knitted together completely, but the structure is there.
Completely interesting and delicious to the end.
1hr decant.
Note: this bottle threw a TON of sediment. Almost every glass needed to be rinsed out. Never had this happen to such an extent with this wine.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Pnp about a week after shipping. Nose was excellent. Palate was disjointed a bit with bitterness. After about 30 min it was coming together with fruit and cola, but alas between 4 people it was almost gone. This needs a decant.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Very good for an affordable 15 year old Napa Cabernet from an under the radar producer. Experience was consistent with the bottle enjoyed last month. Lots of complexity. Very good with Shepard's Beef Pie.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Served blind. Garnet color with some bricking with a lot of sediment in the bottle. Nose of bloody steak, a bit of pyrazines and some dark fruit. Similar flavors on the palate with some green veggie notes, tobacco and savory herbs with a good amount of oak. Slightly gritty tannins and not much fruit left on the palate but still in pretty good shape for a 16 year old cabernet. Most people thought the wine was much younger.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
May have decanted for too long. Popped and poured into decanter for 2 hours. Leather, cassis, cedar, and lots of acid. Tannins are there, but I question how integrated they are. Long dry finish, though the wine is far from full bodied.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
A surprisingly youthful looking wine for for fifteen plus years, throwing no sediment. Slow O'd for 30 minutes and then decanted . Hmmm... Nose is of a mature wine showing tobacco, leather, red currant, ripe plums, dried cherries and red berries, tomato leaf, and lots of earthy scents. All red fruits on the palate, very smooth with the tannins being non-existent.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Nose is funk and sweet tobacco with cedar and some sweet red fruit. Cherry driven palate with cola and a chocolaty long finish. Very thin tannins give it a very light mouth feel. Still silky, balanced, and delicious.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Take one down, pass it around, one less bottle of cab in the fridge... these are consistently solid, and at this stage of maturity it's excellent with pot roast. Save the ribeye for something younger, bigger, and more tannic.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
It pours out a brick reddish blood-orangy kind of color and immediately smells of a kind of sweet funk. It's like herbs and wet leaves mixed with the sweet red fruits that come through mostly in the form of bright fresh cherries. A very enjoyable characteristic; the funk fades into a meatiness, and is followed by dirt, coffee, cedar, and currant.
The palate shows cola, pink starburst/red sweet tart, mineral/dust, orange zest, cherries, kiwi, and an almost agave like eucalyptusy/mintyness. Drinking the wine with steak and rice shows blackberry and pepper as dominant. A 15+ sec finish lingers and has a little bit of everything, and I have to say: this wine is the epitome of complexity in my limited experience. Every time you address the glass you can get something different both aromatically, and viscerally. I've tried to just put down every little thing I experienced, and I feel like I missed describing so much. This wine is oh so very good.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Smooth well integrated cab, not a lot of fruit. Aerated into decanter - was fine to drink right away but would benefit from additional time to breathe.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Quite good - decanted for almost two hours. Needs to be filtered - there's a fair amount of sediment. Was excellent with grilled tenderloin filets and next day with some excellent cellar-aged cheddar. Smooth, nice bouquet, no bite - as you would expect from a wine this old. No need to keep this in the cellar. Drink it now.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Opened up quickly after being venturied into a decanter. Continued to open through out the evening. A couple of hours decant really does this bottle justice. Fantastic nose, great mouth feel witha medium finish. An excellent QPR for the price.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Decanted for a little over an hour... Brick red in color as to be expected from a wine this old. This wine is subtle in all of the right ways. Aromas of cassis followed by dark fruit on the palate and a little bit of pepper at the end to complement the fruit. Smooth tannins. Had this along with a 2009 pine ridge cab, and this one was my clear favorite
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Decanted for 4 hours. Color: reddish brown Nose: tobacco, leather and dried cherry. Picked up some licorice toward the end of my first glass. Taste: tart cherry, earthy with a nice tannin structure and very balanced.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Dark crimson with brick edges. Nose is leather and earthy/herbal tones with some dust. Continues into currant and licorice with chocolate cherries in the background. Herbal notes continue onto the palate with minerals, wood, and cherry cola. Light acidity balanced out with round, soft tannins. Medium finish, tasty aged cab. 91
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Brownish maroon. Stewed plums, cedar, and mushroom nose. Medium bodied, blackberries, dark cherries, pepper, resinous tannins, char, and a grainy, medium length finish. Interesting, didn't blow me away, but fine for the closeout price. Seems to me to be past its peak, but I'm no expert on aged Cabs.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Decanted the wine for about an hour and a half. It was very smooth. The nose was subtle and earthy. The color a deep ruby. The mouth was smooth and simple with hints of oak. I enjoyed the other bottle we drank of this wine a couple months ago but feel that it's drinking window is closing. Still it was delightful.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Opened for Christmas dinner at parents' house. The bottle was undrinkable. Judging by the recent Cellar Tracker reviews, my flawed bottle was the outlier....
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Ran it through a Vinturi then let it sit in the glass for 20 minutes or so. Delicious. A bit of plum with lots of leathery earth and just a tiny hit of brighter fruit initially, then transforming to smokier notes with medium tannins that grip your tongue in the most satisfying way during the fairly long finish. Had 2 glasses over 2 hours and thoroughly enjoyed each, though since I didn't decant the entire bottle I can't speak much to the transformation as they both received the same treatment of the aerator and sitting in the glass.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
Being a 15 year old wine I presumed it would take a couple hours of decanting to open up and truly express its qualities. . . That did not end up being the case. We were pleasantly surprised that after only 45 minutes of decanting both the nose and the flavors of this wine really opened up. The nose had a large amount of rich fruit with notes of plumb, cherry, blackberry, and maybe currant. We did not experience much of the leather others are noting, but the tannins were pleasantly soft to balance with the fruit. The wine drank much more like a 5-10 year old Cali cab rather than a full 15 year old cab. We liked the vibrance that remained in the wine for the first hour of consumption. This wine was consumed at Underbelly in Houston, TX and paired with goat leg dinner. The two paired excellently, but my one complaint was that after about 1.5 hours of consumption the final few tastes seemed like they had fallen off the cliff, or the bloom of the taste bouquet had reached its limit. I would purchase this wine again - expecially off woot where we can get it directly from the vineyard's cellar. Great deal-
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Decant for at least 30 min. Nose is leather, spice, chocolate cherry liquor, barnyard, and so much more. Palate of cherries and chocolate, lots of cola after an hour or so. Hints of coffee and minerals also. Crimson moving to brick red on the edges. Soft tannins, medium plus finish. A truly fantastic wine. Still has some life left in it, so don't rush.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
This needs time to breath. Ran through Soire into decanter. Then into glass where I took a quick sip. Still very closed up. Some bottle bouquet including chocolate and dark cherry. After sitting in glass for 20 minutes could get a sense of red berries, spice, dulled chocolate (almost amaretto.) Taste has opened up as well. Cherries, mocha, some blackberries, leather, a little woody flavor and soft tannins. None of the dust/chalk/sand type flavor in many aged cabs. I have poured the remainder of the bottle back in from the decanter, closed with vacutainer and will have a glass each of the next 4 or so days. I'll try to remember and update these notes. I have another 4 bottles left and am very happy that I do. This is a tasty, smooth, medium bodied wine at this age with enough tannins and heat that it still needs some air and like with the last bottle a month ago, I'm sure will easily last a week and only get better.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
Good not really good. The fruit is gone but what is left is still good, spicy and dry but smooth. Interesting that there was no sediment in bottle, but the color showed the brick on the edges.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Excellent wine; was worried initially after reading about some horrible bottles, but this was really good.
Color: Medium-to-light red, with substantial brick on the edges. About what one would expect from an aged cab. Medium legs. Nose: Berries, prunes, some spice. Tons of fruit relative to its age. A 'wet' nose as well, if that makes any sense (ie no dust or powdered rocks that I often find in other older cabs). A little wood (balsa? cedar?) Taste: Mellow currants, cherries, blackberries, all muted but present. Nice aged and soft tannins (I imagine they were much more present in this wine's youth). Everything just really balanced.
This is a good wine, and (I imagine) has benefited a great deal from the age. It is unlikely that it will benefit from additional aging, IMO. At $20 a bottle, really an insane QPR if you like classically made aged cabs. 90-91 points.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Drank it a month ago and needed to get another. We all enjoyed it. Gave it about a half hour to breathe..it was earthy and so smooth, rich and full bodied. It had aged nicely. The oldest bottle I had purchase but since I bought it off "Wine Woot" and the wine had been cellared by the winery, I felt comfortable about how it had been cellared.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Was very smooth from the first poor. Tasted spice and leather. This was the oldest wine I have had so far and I really enjoyed it. Left the bottle open and let it sit for about 24 hours. Towards the end of 24 hours the taste was a little funky, but still drinkable.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
6:30 pm: nose: jammy, anise, dark fruit; fruity, rye aftertaste. 9:00 pm: nose: fruit is gone; laid back, mild tannins; slightly bitter in a pleasant way
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
I drank two bottles recently, and both were delicious. Both had some pepper, mushroom and I think currant, with a little raisin- maybe getting close to turning? Time to drink up!
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Had this alongside the 2001, and this was clearly superior. Probably a bit past its prime for some, but if you are like me and like them old, it is quite a find. Very complex on the nose and palate.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
May have got a bad bottle, dark stain on part of bottle where it had been laying for years. Tasted past it's prime, with a dust after taste (sign of age). Drinkable and opened up after an hour.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Color: Deep Brick with good clarity aside from bits of sediment ( didn't do the greatest job decanting) nothing unexpected here
Nose: moderate to aromatic, aged. Sandalwood, hints of sage and cedar, persimmon, and cherry
Palate: Dry with medium body. Fresh acidity and low to moderate drying tannins. Good balance and moderate flavor intensity. Flavors of (his: cherry, cooked green bean or asparagus, soy/chocolate) (hers: Mediterranean mix: sundried tomatoes, black olive, a touch of fig)
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Drank with friends in Ft. Lauderdale and paired with buffalo tenderloin. The wine was popped and poured. It showed mature notes of dark fruits including beautiful currant and glycerin. This wine is in a great place right now. Recommend to drink by 2013.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
11/9/2021 - rjquillin Likes this wine:
Still tasty, but really need to step up consumption on these.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
10/20/2019 - nathanbsmith Likes this wine:
This was my last bottle of of the 97 vintage. The cork was fully intact and like all previous bottles, there was significant sediment bottle which was quickly cleaned up after passing it through a filter. Initial PNP, was pretty closed on the nose but had a musty, earthy component. Beautiful deep brick color and an smooth earthy flavor (tobacco and leather).
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
11/5/2018 - ken@ampy.com Likes this wine: 92 Points
Aging very well, no hint of going over the hill, very smooth and layered.
Drinking well right now and will probably hold for another 5 years. Enjoyed with a roast loin of Pork and grilled asparagus, great accompaniment. I wish I had more but, alas, all good things must end.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
7/2/2018 - nfurlong Likes this wine: 90 Points
My go-to wine for a special occasion. Pulled from a 55 degree cellar; and poured through a Vacuvin. Pristine cork, no visible signs of bricking. Sediment in the neck and shoulder of the bottle. Medium body. Beautifully aromatic and intoxicating nose. Spicy red currant, tobacco, leather, and red flowers. Palate dominated by earth tones, but there's still enough red fruit, tannic structure and acidity to support enjoying this with a chargrilled ribeye steak. Long, persistent finish. Thumbs up purchase and kudos to the producer!
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
1/21/2018 - scott w wrote:
Nice nose of aged cab, on the palate this bottle was fading and hanging on or dear life. Fruit fading and becoming shrill and acidic, also a lot of green. I like lean cabs but this one was too far gone,wife hated it.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
1/12/2018 - joesi16 Likes this wine:
Not much has changed since last bottle. Holding up well but i'd rather drink it a little early than a second late.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
10/12/2017 - Rich S Likes this wine: 90 Points
Popped and poured but should have decanted for sediment. Nose of black cherry, black currant, slightly vegetal and earthy with some cedar cigar box and tobacco notes. Similar flavors on the palate with medium to medium+ acid. Tannins fully integrated, medium body. I would probably drink up if holding any while there is still some fruit left.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
9/24/2016 - wmccone54 wrote: 92 Points
I was somewhat expecting this to be well into decline; there's been some slight bottle variation in the prior bottles over the last three years. Much to my pleasant surprise, this is still going strong!
Pulled from a 55 degree cellar; and decanted. Pristine cork, no visible signs of bricking. Sediment in the neck and shoulder of the bottle. Medium body. Beautifully aromatic and intoxicating nose. Spicy red currant, tobacco, leather, and red flowers. Palate dominated by earth tones, but there's still enough red fruit, tannic structure and acidity to support enjoying this with a chargrilled ribeye steak. Long, persistent finish. Thumbs up purchase and kudos to the producer!
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
4/4/2015 - jdhart306 wrote:
Very similar to last time I had this around two years ago. Decanted for about an hour. Great nose of cherries and cassis. On the palate, cassis again with a little pepper leading to a long finish. However, this wine started to fall apart after an hour in the glass and became only a shell of what it once was. Nose was still great, but the profile was quite diminished on the palate. Drink up.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
1/10/2015 - nathanbsmith Likes this wine: 92 Points
Still amazing!!
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comments (1)
1/5/2015 - nlassow Likes this wine:
This bottle was easily the best of 4 consumed over the last 2 years. We were smitten with it. Perfect cork, not much sediment, mild/moderate bricking, less herb on the nose and more developed dark berry fruit. If only they all could have been close to this good. Still lots of earth and paired well with mushroom mac n cheese with a thick colorado lamb loin chop. Makes me wonder if this wine was in a dumb phase and is peaking now?
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
5/17/2014 - nathanbsmith wrote: 92 Points
Fantastic cab!!
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
5/14/2014 - Furry Goat wrote: 92 Points
Drinking so well right now. 1 hr decant. Nose is full of every note I've ever taken. It has a nice sage component right now that I've never noticed. Palate is great with highlites of cola and chocolate cherries with a long long finish. Dee-lish.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
4/2/2014 - Furry Goat Likes this wine: 91 Points
Really enjoying this bottle. Reminiscent of previous notes, but I'll jot a few current notes down. 45 min decant. Nose is chocolate and cherries and tobacco and sweetness. Slight floral perfume also. Cherries on the palate, veggie component, mineral/chalkyness (slight), chocolate, dirt, slight spice. Smooth, light-medium bodied, long finish.
It seems every bottle of this stuff is a gamble for me, but I have one left and I hope it's as great as this one.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
3/2/2014 - wmccone54 wrote: 90 Points
A mature Cabernet showing some slight bricking. Spicy red currant, savory plums, wet pine needles, and lots of earthy tobacco. Structure is holding this together. Very nice, but fruit has really started to fade over the last year. Given the $25 price point this was a great opportunity to checkout an aged and mature Napa Cabernet.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
12/27/2013 - Furry Goat wrote: 91 Points
Out of the nine bottles I got last time, 5 were dropping an overwhelming amount of sediment and made the experience less than pleasurable. This is the second bottle that is spot on delicious. The difference is in the accumulation on the neck and shoulder of the bottle. If it is solid, then almost nothing has broken off and will throw almost no sediment. If it is spotty and lacking in uniformity, there are tons of chunks floating around in there and it will fill each glass with grit.
Nose is outstanding. Campfire, black licorice, currant, chocolate, cherries, funk, and much more. Palate is cherries galore. Some cola, mint, touch of espresso, slight spice, old wood. Silky smooth, this bottle is disappearing. This is why I bought this stuff. 8+ second finish.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
12/12/2013 - Furry Goat wrote: 89 Points
This bottle is the first of this batch that didn't throw a ton of sediment. Delicious.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
12/3/2013 - Charlie Pendejo wrote:
Delightful - this is holding up just fine, at least lying down at 58F. Plenty of sediment. Presented pretty much the same as several other bottles I've enjoyed the last 12 months: aged notes like leather plus just enough red and darker fruit, in very nice balance and with the complexity you want in a cab with some age. With both tannins and fruit pretty well mellowed, this is so much more versatile with food than a typical young cab - went great with a variety of dinners over three days. Held up nicely over that span; if other bottles are seriously downhill, there must be variation either from the source or in storage. Last of my '97s but I'm happy to have some '96s on the way now.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
11/20/2013 - Furry Goat wrote: 87 Points
I think my best bottles of this are behind me. This one hasn't thrown any sediment. Brilliant nose, palate falls flat with some cardboard and metallic finish.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
11/5/2013 - Furry Goat wrote: 89 Points
Throwing a lot of sediment. Great nose, palate has lost a step.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
10/29/2013 - Bill1100 wrote: 82 Points
My last bottle of this wine. The first two were excellent - I rated both at 90. In the seven months since drinking the last bottle, this has really gone downhill. Even more sediment, it clogged my filter. Not pleasant on the nose, and leaves an aftertaste that I'm not sure how to describe. Threw away 2/3 of the bottle.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
10/9/2013 - Rich S Likes this wine: 92 Points
Dark crimson color. Some currant and dark red fruit notes on the nose along with some earthy, barnyard notes, a bit of green veggies, tobacco and cedar. Really nice mature cab nose. Similar flavors on the palate with a really nice mix of cassis and tomato sort of going on with a bit of oak on the back end. Fine, sweet tannins and medium acidity. Finished smooth as well. Really impressive showing from this wine and it is unbelievable that the wine is 16 years old. It drinks like it is half that old.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
9/28/2013 - nathanbsmith Likes this wine: 91 Points
Tasting 9/28/13: Color: brown/red or brackish with a lot of sediment. Orange was also used to describe the color.
Nose: sweet, deep woody, tobacco, blueberry, raspberry, leather, cedar
Palate: very smooth, strawberry, mildly fruity
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
9/27/2013 - joesi16 wrote: 89 Points
Real smooth,leather and spice some light fruit. Last glass on day 2 held up well. Heavy side and neck sediment, filter and/or decant.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
9/19/2013 - Furry Goat wrote: 89 Points
Cherries and pungent tobacco on the nose with some slight barnyard and dried leaves. Not quite as exciting of a nose as I remember. Palate is very nice with some menthol, cola, cherry, chocolate, licorice, and probably more. Nice complexity in the palate.
Wine seems to be showing a little thinner mouthfeel than usual.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
9/9/2013 - Furry Goat Likes this wine: 90 Points
Blood to brickish red in the glass bordering on orange towards the edges. Nose is excellent as always. So pungent, complex. Sends my brain running in all directions when I try to pick things out. Deep, sweet, mint, funk. Tobacco, cherry, menthol, forest floor, rosemary, licorice, bbq sauce.
Palate enters with a slight mineral/dirt/herb component, like a raw sprig of some unoffensive herb just plucked. Transitions to cherry, cola, and coffee and chocolate notes that define the tannins in this wine that are still plenty abundant. Slight licorice towards the finish as well. Medium finish is around 10 sec.
Fruit is definitely moving toward the background on the palate. Wine enters with a slight edge of acid, but the tannins come sweeping through on the mid palate to balance the wine out. Acid stays present and competes with the tannin through the finish. Not knitted together completely, but the structure is there.
Completely interesting and delicious to the end.
1hr decant.
Note: this bottle threw a TON of sediment. Almost every glass needed to be rinsed out. Never had this happen to such an extent with this wine.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
8/31/2013 - klezman wrote:
This bottle is doing even better than the previous one. Delicious.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
8/30/2013 - Furry Goat wrote: 88 Points
Pnp about a week after shipping. Nose was excellent. Palate was disjointed a bit with bitterness. After about 30 min it was coming together with fruit and cola, but alas between 4 people it was almost gone. This needs a decant.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
8/23/2013 - nathanbsmith Likes this wine: 91 Points
This 16 year old Cab is outstanding. It doesn't disappoint. I'm glad I added another 9 bottles to my cellar on wine.woot.com.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
7/20/2013 - rjquillin Likes this wine:
Another fine bottle consistent with earlier, showing it's age and holding up nicely. Great woot find, excellent qpr.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
5/17/2013 - wmccone54 wrote: 91 Points
Very good for an affordable 15 year old Napa Cabernet from an under the radar producer. Experience was consistent with the bottle enjoyed last month. Lots of complexity. Very good with Shepard's Beef Pie.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
5/10/2013 - Rich S wrote: 88 Points
Served blind. Garnet color with some bricking with a lot of sediment in the bottle. Nose of bloody steak, a bit of pyrazines and some dark fruit. Similar flavors on the palate with some green veggie notes, tobacco and savory herbs with a good amount of oak. Slightly gritty tannins and not much fruit left on the palate but still in pretty good shape for a 16 year old cabernet. Most people thought the wine was much younger.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
4/14/2013 - snekse wrote: 85 Points
May have decanted for too long. Popped and poured into decanter for 2 hours. Leather, cassis, cedar, and lots of acid. Tannins are there, but I question how integrated they are. Long dry finish, though the wine is far from full bodied.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
4/13/2013 - wmccone54 wrote: 92 Points
A surprisingly youthful looking wine for for fifteen plus years, throwing no sediment. Slow O'd for 30 minutes and then decanted . Hmmm... Nose is of a mature wine showing tobacco, leather, red currant, ripe plums, dried cherries and red berries, tomato leaf, and lots of earthy scents. All red fruits on the palate, very smooth with the tannins being non-existent.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
4/13/2013 - klezman wrote:
Yum. Great bottle bouquet, nice set of flavours. Nothing out of the expected for Napa CS, just a nicely put together bottle.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
4/12/2013 - Furry Goat wrote: 91 Points
Nose is funk and sweet tobacco with cedar and some sweet red fruit. Cherry driven palate with cola and a chocolaty long finish. Very thin tannins give it a very light mouth feel. Still silky, balanced, and delicious.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
4/10/2013 - Charlie Pendejo wrote:
Take one down, pass it around, one less bottle of cab in the fridge... these are consistently solid, and at this stage of maturity it's excellent with pot roast. Save the ribeye for something younger, bigger, and more tannic.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
3/20/2013 - Furry Goat Likes this wine: 91 Points
It pours out a brick reddish blood-orangy kind of color and immediately smells of a kind of sweet funk. It's like herbs and wet leaves mixed with the sweet red fruits that come through mostly in the form of bright fresh cherries. A very enjoyable characteristic; the funk fades into a meatiness, and is followed by dirt, coffee, cedar, and currant.
The palate shows cola, pink starburst/red sweet tart, mineral/dust, orange zest, cherries, kiwi, and an almost agave like eucalyptusy/mintyness. Drinking the wine with steak and rice shows blackberry and pepper as dominant. A 15+ sec finish lingers and has a little bit of everything, and I have to say: this wine is the epitome of complexity in my limited experience. Every time you address the glass you can get something different both aromatically, and viscerally. I've tried to just put down every little thing I experienced, and I feel like I missed describing so much. This wine is oh so very good.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
3/13/2013 - Ram19 Likes this wine: 90 Points
Smooth well integrated cab, not a lot of fruit. Aerated into decanter - was fine to drink right away but would benefit from additional time to breathe.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
3/3/2013 - Bill1100 wrote: 90 Points
Quite good - decanted for almost two hours. Needs to be filtered - there's a fair amount of sediment. Was excellent with grilled tenderloin filets and next day with some excellent cellar-aged cheddar. Smooth, nice bouquet, no bite - as you would expect from a wine this old. No need to keep this in the cellar. Drink it now.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
2/28/2013 - goaljnky wrote: 90 Points
Opened up quickly after being venturied into a decanter. Continued to open through out the evening. A couple of hours decant really does this bottle justice. Fantastic nose, great mouth feel witha medium finish. An excellent QPR for the price.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
2/19/2013 - DaveandJulie Likes this wine: 88 Points
Brick red color. Leather, cedar, and earth on the nose. Cassis and stewed prune on the palate. I'm not sure that more age would benefit this wine.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
2/17/2013 - jdhart306 wrote:
Decanted for a little over an hour... Brick red in color as to be expected from a wine this old. This wine is subtle in all of the right ways. Aromas of cassis followed by dark fruit on the palate and a little bit of pepper at the end to complement the fruit. Smooth tannins. Had this along with a 2009 pine ridge cab, and this one was my clear favorite
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
2/14/2013 - kmays wrote: 90 Points
Throwing quite a bit of sediment as expected. Very smooth. Leather and berry on the palate.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
2/13/2013 - Furry Goat wrote:
Still drinking great.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
2/8/2013 - tzarf Likes this wine: 91 Points
Consistently Delicious
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
2/7/2013 - ERMD54302 wrote: 92 Points
Beautiful aged cab with all of the typical nuisances
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
2/2/2013 - nathanbsmith Likes this wine: 91 Points
Decanted for 4 hours.
Color: reddish brown
Nose: tobacco, leather and dried cherry. Picked up some licorice toward the end of my first glass.
Taste: tart cherry, earthy with a nice tannin structure and very balanced.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
1/26/2013 - Charlie Pendejo wrote: 88 Points
Movie night. Decent typical mature (it's showing its fifteen years, it's not young for its age) CA cab and pretty good value at closeout price.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
1/23/2013 - Furry Goat wrote: 91 Points
Dark crimson with brick edges. Nose is leather and earthy/herbal tones with some dust. Continues into currant and licorice with chocolate cherries in the background. Herbal notes continue onto the palate with minerals, wood, and cherry cola. Light acidity balanced out with round, soft tannins. Medium finish, tasty aged cab. 91
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
1/21/2013 - jasonbolton Likes this wine: 91 Points
leather, small cherry, tart and delicious
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
1/21/2013 - ERMD54302 wrote: flawed
Flawed
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comments (4)
1/20/2013 - merryberry wrote: 87 Points
Brownish maroon. Stewed plums, cedar, and mushroom nose. Medium bodied, blackberries, dark cherries, pepper, resinous tannins, char, and a grainy, medium length finish. Interesting, didn't blow me away, but fine for the closeout price. Seems to me to be past its peak, but I'm no expert on aged Cabs.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
12/31/2012 - Jzez1998 wrote: flawed
Corked......real bummer.....
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
12/25/2012 - Sandydog Likes this wine: 90 Points
Decanted the wine for about an hour and a half. It was very smooth. The nose was subtle and earthy. The color a deep ruby. The mouth was smooth and simple with hints of oak. I enjoyed the other bottle we drank of this wine a couple months ago but feel that it's drinking window is closing. Still it was delightful.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
12/24/2012 - John O' Likes this wine: 91 Points
decanted for 1.5 hours, then back in rinsed bottle. Very enjoyable. Perhaps a bit past it's peak, but still in a nice place.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
12/22/2012 - RStewart67 wrote: flawed
Opened for Christmas dinner at parents' house. The bottle was undrinkable. Judging by the recent Cellar Tracker reviews, my flawed bottle was the outlier....
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
12/8/2012 - mqvn wrote: 90 Points
Plum and cherry fruit flavors with some earth and spice on the finish. Fine grainy tannins still present.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
12/7/2012 - tzarf Likes this wine: 91 Points
Ran it through a Vinturi then let it sit in the glass for 20 minutes or so. Delicious. A bit of plum with lots of leathery earth and just a tiny hit of brighter fruit initially, then transforming to smokier notes with medium tannins that grip your tongue in the most satisfying way during the fairly long finish. Had 2 glasses over 2 hours and thoroughly enjoyed each, though since I didn't decant the entire bottle I can't speak much to the transformation as they both received the same treatment of the aerator and sitting in the glass.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
12/6/2012 - TXtasteABL Likes this wine: 90 Points
Being a 15 year old wine I presumed it would take a couple hours of decanting to open up and truly express its qualities. . . That did not end up being the case. We were pleasantly surprised that after only 45 minutes of decanting both the nose and the flavors of this wine really opened up. The nose had a large amount of rich fruit with notes of plumb, cherry, blackberry, and maybe currant. We did not experience much of the leather others are noting, but the tannins were pleasantly soft to balance with the fruit. The wine drank much more like a 5-10 year old Cali cab rather than a full 15 year old cab. We liked the vibrance that remained in the wine for the first hour of consumption. This wine was consumed at Underbelly in Houston, TX and paired with goat leg dinner. The two paired excellently, but my one complaint was that after about 1.5 hours of consumption the final few tastes seemed like they had fallen off the cliff, or the bloom of the taste bouquet had reached its limit. I would purchase this wine again - expecially off woot where we can get it directly from the vineyard's cellar. Great deal-
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
12/4/2012 - Furry Goat wrote: 91 Points
Decant for at least 30 min. Nose is leather, spice, chocolate cherry liquor, barnyard, and so much more. Palate of cherries and chocolate, lots of cola after an hour or so. Hints of coffee and minerals also. Crimson moving to brick red on the edges. Soft tannins, medium plus finish. A truly fantastic wine. Still has some life left in it, so don't rush.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
12/2/2012 - mschauber Likes this wine: 91 Points
This needs time to breath. Ran through Soire into decanter. Then into glass where I took a quick sip. Still very closed up. Some bottle bouquet including chocolate and dark cherry. After sitting in glass for 20 minutes could get a sense of red berries, spice, dulled chocolate (almost amaretto.) Taste has opened up as well. Cherries, mocha, some blackberries, leather, a little woody flavor and soft tannins. None of the dust/chalk/sand type flavor in many aged cabs. I have poured the remainder of the bottle back in from the decanter, closed with vacutainer and will have a glass each of the next 4 or so days. I'll try to remember and update these notes. I have another 4 bottles left and am very happy that I do. This is a tasty, smooth, medium bodied wine at this age with enough tannins and heat that it still needs some air and like with the last bottle a month ago, I'm sure will easily last a week and only get better.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
11/23/2012 - manny651 wrote: 86 Points
Good not really good. The fruit is gone but what is left is still good, spicy and dry but smooth. Interesting that there was no sediment in bottle, but the color showed the brick on the edges.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
11/18/2012 - jermfisher wrote: 92 Points
Still had fruit at 15 years. Leather and spice underneath
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
11/18/2012 - jawlz wrote: 91 Points
Excellent wine; was worried initially after reading about some horrible bottles, but this was really good.
Color: Medium-to-light red, with substantial brick on the edges. About what one would expect from an aged cab. Medium legs.
Nose: Berries, prunes, some spice. Tons of fruit relative to its age. A 'wet' nose as well, if that makes any sense (ie no dust or powdered rocks that I often find in other older cabs). A little wood (balsa? cedar?)
Taste: Mellow currants, cherries, blackberries, all muted but present. Nice aged and soft tannins (I imagine they were much more present in this wine's youth). Everything just really balanced.
This is a good wine, and (I imagine) has benefited a great deal from the age. It is unlikely that it will benefit from additional aging, IMO. At $20 a bottle, really an insane QPR if you like classically made aged cabs. 90-91 points.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
11/17/2012 - Sandydog Likes this wine: 93 Points
Drank it a month ago and needed to get another. We all enjoyed it. Gave it about a half hour to breathe..it was earthy and so smooth, rich and full bodied. It had aged nicely. The oldest bottle I had purchase but since I bought it off "Wine Woot" and the wine had been cellared by the winery, I felt comfortable about how it had been cellared.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
11/12/2012 - nealkb wrote: 90 Points
Was very smooth from the first poor. Tasted spice and leather. This was the oldest wine I have had so far and I really enjoyed it. Left the bottle open and let it sit for about 24 hours. Towards the end of 24 hours the taste was a little funky, but still drinkable.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
11/9/2012 - troutstix wrote: 90 Points
Leather, Mushroom, Cedar, Earthy, Cherries, Blackberries, Mocha. Very nice! Really opened up around hour 3.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
11/8/2012 - discombobulated wrote:
6:30 pm: nose: jammy, anise, dark fruit; fruity, rye aftertaste.
9:00 pm: nose: fruit is gone; laid back, mild tannins; slightly bitter in a pleasant way
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
11/5/2012 - Travis D wrote: 91 Points
Nose was earthy and wonderful. Fruits have left a bit - mellow to mid. Very easy drinking - aged well. Ordered some more :)
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
11/3/2012 - Schaeferr Likes this wine: 93 Points
Smooth and earthy tasting. Had aged great!
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
11/1/2012 - mschauber wrote: 94 Points
Improved after 1 week in fridge (having used vacutainer. Detailed notes to follow.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
10/31/2012 - drtroppo wrote:
I drank two bottles recently, and both were delicious. Both had some pepper, mushroom and I think currant, with a little raisin- maybe getting close to turning? Time to drink up!
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
10/31/2012 - jim dixon wrote: 92 Points
Had this alongside the 2001, and this was clearly superior. Probably a bit past its prime for some, but if you are like me and like them old, it is quite a find. Very complex on the nose and palate.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
10/25/2012 - bjwca wrote: 91 Points
Nice dry finish in the mouth. Soft tannins, and med-low fruit flavor
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
10/24/2012 - TEXAS TOAD wrote: 85 Points
May have got a bad bottle, dark stain on part of bottle where it had been laying for years. Tasted past it's prime, with a dust after taste (sign of age). Drinkable and opened up after an hour.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
10/22/2012 - ArlenP wrote: 91 Points
Nice wine, very mellow, still has some life left.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
10/17/2012 - cmaldoon Likes this wine: 90 Points
Color: Deep Brick with good clarity aside from bits of sediment ( didn't do the greatest job decanting) nothing unexpected here
Nose: moderate to aromatic, aged. Sandalwood, hints of sage and cedar, persimmon, and cherry
Palate: Dry with medium body. Fresh acidity and low to moderate drying tannins. Good balance and moderate flavor intensity. Flavors of (his: cherry, cooked green bean or asparagus, soy/chocolate) (hers: Mediterranean mix: sundried tomatoes, black olive, a touch of fig)
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
10/30/2011 - Dorcea wrote: 92 Points
Drank with friends in Ft. Lauderdale and paired with buffalo tenderloin. The wine was popped and poured. It showed mature notes of dark fruits including beautiful currant and glycerin. This wine is in a great place right now. Recommend to drink by 2013.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment