2014 B Cellars Cabernet Sauvignon Beckstoffer To Kalon Vineyard

Community Tasting Notes (6) Avg Score: 95.4 points

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  1/4/2021 - Mark1npt Likes this wine: 94 Points

  Just a touch reduced from previous bottle. Very rich in molasses and cherry syrup when first poured but after 2 hours in the decanter it levels out into a very nice, albeit reduced example of this vineyard. I enjoyed it but was taken aback by the stewed plums on opening and it took all of 2 hours for this to change its fruit profile and come together a bit more. This bottle procured from a source that I've not dealt with before so not sure of provenance or prior storage. While it's very good, it drinks older to me than it's '14 vintage would suggest.

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  6/13/2020 - csimm wrote: 97 Points

  As good as it was 1.5 years ago. A big, mouthwatering wine that is somehow able to finesse its way clear of being a brute. Super luscious blue and black berry fruits, with embers, slate, anise/dark spices, and black soil rounding-out the profile. It carried an 'unfined' sense about it, which heightened the chewiness in the mouthfeel. Saturated and concentrated. Finishes full and plush, with the right amount of spine to keep it upright throughout the extension of the back end. When I veer toward hedonism, this is where I like to end up. 95-97 points depending on how dark and chewy you like your Napa Cabs. I personally liked the texture.
  
  The only slight detractor on this particular bottle was that a Coravin pour kicked up some sediment. Once I opened the bottle and let the remainder of the wine sit in the vertical bottle for a while, the sediment was a non-issue. Best advice is to let bottles sit upright for a few days before consumption, pop the cork, and pour slowly. Standby for some solid bits on your final pour perhaps. Nothing to get too worked-up over in my opinion.

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  6/6/2020 - Mark1npt Likes this wine: 96 Points

  First time for this wine in this vintage. WOTN, no questions asked.......most put together in structure, most balanced with fruit, acidity, integrated sweet, soft tannins, and best finish. Goes on for 20-30 seconds. We all enjoyed it immensely. Not a big powerful wine at this juncture, just a very, very nice wine at this time. Great with perfectly prepared short ribs and lumpy mashed potatoes! Lol, Jimbo! I only had 2 lumps!

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  12/30/2018 - csimm wrote: 97 Points

  So for those familiar with B Cellars, Venge, and To Kalon, it should come as no surprise that this particular concoction is chock-full of hedonistic and viscous unctuousness that delivers up-front flavors in an unabashedly sultry fashion.
  
  Notes of ripe blackberry, blueberry, deeply pitched red raspberry and cassis, scorched earth/burnt embers, black soil, subtle blue and black rock, and dark spices. An extraordinary mid-palate, with plenty of energy to thrust the waves of flavor on through the back end. Finishes a little chewy, but with plenty of lift so as to avoid ever becoming heavy or burdensome. The back end sails on for over a minute.
  
  Fear not Caymus haters, this is NOT that wine. There is a gorgeous interplay of acid, grip, and drive to juxtapose the ripe fruit and create the necessary focus and tension to best present both as a sexy beast of a wine, as well as having the ability to flex with a stature whose frame also has cut and definition. This is not a confection bomb, nor does it come off as overly processed or worked-over the way some goofy modern monkeys can show.
  
  This 2014 is more blue-fruited than the 2015 and 2016, but with signature To Kalon black soil components that clearly speak to the site. The 2014 falls in between its siblings in terms of depth and concentration; deeper than the 2015, but carrying a hair less of a complex mid-palate drop than the compelling 2016.
  
  97 points. This has enough scaffolding to be held for some short term cellaring, but I can’t see it developing further or better over time necessarily. For my palate, this is firing where it should be right now.
  
  ...Not for those who wear berets, are self-professed cat people, or who drink afternoon tea and play Tiddlywinks with any sort of regularity...

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  7/3/2017 - Dborbas wrote:

  Robert Parker = 100 points

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