Drinking VERY well...I was pleased with this bottle. Tannins round and velvety. Fruit still dark and luscious...blackberry, cassis, currant. Oak very well integrated and alcohol, as always with Trefethen, moderate and well-balanced. I wish I had more!
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Nose of blackberries, cassis, leather, and wet stone. Tastes of blackberries and blueberries with cranberries on the back palate. The oak and tannins take a backseat to the fruit at this point. A little on the tart side for me. Drink now if you have one left in the cellar.
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Rather disappointing. Felt like it needed more age for the tannins/structure, but also felt like the flavor had been leached out by too much time in the bottle. Still a nice drink, but a let down for expectations.
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I'm usually a fan of this bottling but this felt slightly off and didn't evolve as well as I thought it should. Blackberry, cassis, and singed leather bouquet over aromas of mountain conifer and damp earth. Tart, structured, and savory, the palate shows a beam of acidity, a creamy mid-note, and ends with Cabernet grip. Overall it came across too tart and linear, with not enough balance or complexity. Even with all the griping it was still an 88 point wine but, again, I expected more.
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Even from a 375 this wine seems un-evolved. Blackcurrant and smoke, with obvious layers of oak. Unfortuanately not much hiding on the other side of the tannins. This wine is anything but graceful. 2010 Napa is turning out great, but I suspect this one will never achieve much more than average rating.
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Over oaked and over manufactured. Only redeeming quality was bottle age has produced some notes of prune and earthiness. Thinking overpriced Blackstone/Rodney Strong.
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Last one at the local shop after staring at it for about 8 months. Bought it today and PnP out of VinOair. Took about 2 hours to come around but when it did, it was exceptional. Dark fruits, blackberries, blueberries. Still tannins to evolve as it was dry, but drinking wonderfully. I would've decanted had I not gotten home late.
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This starts with a big bold and spicy nose with a lot of Cassis and some earth. The body diverges from the nose in a good way, it's very subdued and polished; primarily theres start cranberry and very citric acidity. Tannins are very much in the background.
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Good wine. Not the best buy. Other reviews seem pretty tough. I enjoyed this wine. Good napa quality fruit. Will say the finish was a little watery, didn't quite have that length. But the nose and fruit was all good. Overall it was good wine.
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There is clear and obvious delineation between the 3 primary Cabs produced by Trefethen. This was a nice full bodied wine with dark cherry and chocolate on the palate with a touch of oak on the finish but it is fairly one dimensional. There was also a bit of unpleasant "heat" on the finish. The difference between the regular Cab and the reserve Cab is significant. Not bad but a bit pricey for what it delivers.
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Lifted nose of blackcurrant, red cherry and a hint of oak. Medium-full bodied, fruity and smooth palate, with refreshing acidity, but quite tannic in the back end. Its short and watery finish was sort of a let down. Not bad but probably won't buy again.
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Poured through a vinturi. Needs to breathe more. Very pleasant fruit nose but that was the best part. Rather astringent at first, but evened out later. Still a bit of the medicinal taste and very short length. Did not stand up well to an outstanding tenderloin. Glad this was a gift. Fine at $15, but well overpriced to my mind.
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Had with steak dinner at Hyde Park Prime Steakhouse in Birmingham. Mich. Highly recommended as a "great value" by our waiter, it turned out to be something of a dud, although in terms of retail vs restaurant cost it was a good value. Lots of tannin, a somewhat metallic nose and an almost medicinal taste with a fairly short finish, this particular wine may have been flawed or at best required 3-4 years of additional cellar time. Wish we had gone with the Merryvale cab or 2001 Brunnelo that we originally had considered.
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Deep purple color; nose of serious acetone, blackberry, slight bell pepper but seems very chemical; palate is full bodied, black fruit, tannins not noticeable at all, better balanced than the palate, surprisingly thin in the midpalate; finish is short-medium. Overpriced, not a great california cab, would not recommend to buy but a decent wine to drink, very modern style. Palate>nose. Drink now or in the next few years. 88
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1/14/2024 - bordeaux4wino Likes this wine: 93 Points
Drinking VERY well...I was pleased with this bottle. Tannins round and velvety. Fruit still dark and luscious...blackberry, cassis, currant. Oak very well integrated and alcohol, as always with Trefethen, moderate and well-balanced. I wish I had more!
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3/4/2022 - bwillia Likes this wine: 90 Points
Great potential but still way too young. This needs another ten years. Dominated by structure at this point.
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7/29/2020 - Ranjan wrote: 92 Points
Pencil lead shavings nose, very smooth. Drinking very well
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5/24/2020 - K-Web24 wrote: 88 Points
Nose of blackberries, cassis, leather, and wet stone. Tastes of blackberries and blueberries with cranberries on the back palate. The oak and tannins take a backseat to the fruit at this point. A little on the tart side for me. Drink now if you have one left in the cellar.
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8/17/2019 - theqspeaks wrote: 88 Points
Rather disappointing. Felt like it needed more age for the tannins/structure, but also felt like the flavor had been leached out by too much time in the bottle. Still a nice drink, but a let down for expectations.
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6/16/2018 - Baron Slick wrote: 88 Points
I'm usually a fan of this bottling but this felt slightly off and didn't evolve as well as I thought it should. Blackberry, cassis, and singed leather bouquet over aromas of mountain conifer and damp earth. Tart, structured, and savory, the palate shows a beam of acidity, a creamy mid-note, and ends with Cabernet grip. Overall it came across too tart and linear, with not enough balance or complexity. Even with all the griping it was still an 88 point wine but, again, I expected more.
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11/25/2017 - Poh wrote: 89 Points
Berries/plum/Blackcurrant showing distinctive Napa valley style
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3/20/2017 - 82Latour wrote: 85 Points
Even from a 375 this wine seems un-evolved. Blackcurrant and smoke, with obvious layers of oak. Unfortuanately not much hiding on the other side of the tannins. This wine is anything but graceful. 2010 Napa is turning out great, but I suspect this one will never achieve much more than average rating.
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7/2/2016 - MAXIMUM SATISFACTION wrote: 85 Points
Over oaked and over manufactured. Only redeeming quality was bottle age has produced some notes of prune and earthiness. Thinking overpriced Blackstone/Rodney Strong.
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2/14/2015 - Ispendtoomuchmoneyonwine Likes this wine: 89 Points
Good solid wine. Purple black fruit, plum, chocolate. Overpriced California cab. One of many
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1/15/2015 - Mech-E Likes this wine: 91 Points
Last one at the local shop after staring at it for about 8 months. Bought it today and PnP out of VinOair. Took about 2 hours to come around but when it did, it was exceptional. Dark fruits, blackberries, blueberries. Still tannins to evolve as it was dry, but drinking wonderfully. I would've decanted had I not gotten home late.
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12/19/2014 - JuliannaDHS Likes this wine: 90 Points
This starts with a big bold and spicy nose with a lot of Cassis and some earth. The body diverges from the nose in a good way, it's very subdued and polished; primarily theres start cranberry and very citric acidity. Tannins are very much in the background.
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11/9/2014 - Dempsmat wrote: 88 Points
Was very earthy on the nose. A good wine, but not one I will go out of my way to get again. For the price($40+) there are SO many better wines.
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10/30/2014 - Wine G wrote: 89 Points
Good wine. Not the best buy. Other reviews seem pretty tough. I enjoyed this wine. Good napa quality fruit. Will say the finish was a little watery, didn't quite have that length. But the nose and fruit was all good. Overall it was good wine.
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9/6/2014 - Swajln Likes this wine: 91 Points
Took about an hour to start opening up. This is a great wine.
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7/23/2014 - Swajln Likes this wine: 91 Points
Nice nose, some spice. Long legs, silky smooth texture. Great deep & complex finish. Nothing objectionable.
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5/25/2014 - wconnolly Likes this wine: 84 Points
There is clear and obvious delineation between the 3 primary Cabs produced by Trefethen. This was a nice full bodied wine with dark cherry and chocolate on the palate with a touch of oak on the finish but it is fairly one dimensional. There was also a bit of unpleasant "heat" on the finish. The difference between the regular Cab and the reserve Cab is significant. Not bad but a bit pricey for what it delivers.
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4/10/2014 - j30 wrote: 87 Points
Lifted nose of blackcurrant, red cherry and a hint of oak. Medium-full bodied, fruity and smooth palate, with refreshing acidity, but quite tannic in the back end. Its short and watery finish was sort of a let down. Not bad but probably won't buy again.
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4/3/2014 - jdporter3 wrote: 85 Points
Poured through a vinturi. Needs to breathe more. Very pleasant fruit nose but that was the best part. Rather astringent at first, but evened out later. Still a bit of the medicinal taste and very short length. Did not stand up well to an outstanding tenderloin. Glad this was a gift. Fine at $15, but well overpriced to my mind.
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12/31/2013 - andrewdl wrote: 91 Points
Classic Trefethen cab with notes of cassis and licorice but still tight. Good with our steak.
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12/25/2013 - larryw Does not like this wine: 86 Points
Had with steak dinner at Hyde Park Prime Steakhouse in Birmingham. Mich. Highly recommended as a "great value" by our waiter, it turned out to be something of a dud, although in terms of retail vs restaurant cost it was a good value. Lots of tannin, a somewhat metallic nose and an almost medicinal taste with a fairly short finish, this particular wine may have been flawed or at best required 3-4 years of additional cellar time. Wish we had gone with the Merryvale cab or 2001 Brunnelo that we originally had considered.
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9/10/2013 - aagrawal wrote: 88 Points
Deep purple color; nose of serious acetone, blackberry, slight bell pepper but seems very chemical; palate is full bodied, black fruit, tannins not noticeable at all, better balanced than the palate, surprisingly thin in the midpalate; finish is short-medium. Overpriced, not a great california cab, would not recommend to buy but a decent wine to drink, very modern style. Palate>nose. Drink now or in the next few years. 88
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