2016 Immortal Estate Cabernet Sauvignon Impassable Mountain

Community Tasting Notes (10) Avg Score: 95.7 points

• Options

  • Post a Comment
  • View msf6msf6's profile
  • Report Issue

  1/4/2024 - msf6msf6 Likes this wine: 96 Points

  This is a wine for big Napa cab lovers, despite the fact that's its from Sonoma. All the previous notes were very accurate, though I wish I would have remembered to give it more air. The first sip right out of the bottle was good but after an hour of air in the decanter, it was immensely better. I have recently gone with less decanting time for most of my wines but this is one that needs probably 1.5-2 hours to really get going. By the time we finished the wine after 2 hours in the decanter, it was still improving. Flavor profile is not quite as complex as you would like for $300 but if you like big Cabs, this one is for you.

  Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment

• Options

  • Post a Comment
  • View I'd Rather Be Drinking Wine's profile
  • Report Issue

  10/16/2023 - I'd Rather Be Drinking Wine Likes this wine: 96 Points

  Marvin (WineBurrowingWombat) Visits Minnesota; 10/16/2023-10/23/2023 (Jason's House): WBW was visiting, so I had an excuse to open this! I figured this exquisite wine would be squarely in his wheelhouse, and I think I was right! Regardless, it was squarely in mine!
  
  TN: Nose showed a cornucopia of scents, including lavender, dark berries, earth, tar, anise and spice. The palate was equally compelling with loads of dark fruit, cocoa, tar, earth, rich tobacco and toasty oak all wrapped in silky tannins. This improved throughout the few hours we drank this. It has years ahead of it, and should improve on an already awesome flavor profile!
  
  Easy 96 for me! Drinking great now, but should get even better with more time in the cellar!

  Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment

• Options

  • Post a Comment
  • View WineBurrowingWombat's profile
  • Report Issue

  10/16/2023 - WineBurrowingWombat Likes this wine: 97 Points

  Cracking the whip; 10/16/2023-10/23/2023 (Eagan, MN): N: Bursting on the nose with dark flowers, matching colored fruits, dark earth, spiced and dark tree bark, and a touch of incense. Some generous chocolate that appears then gradually integrates into the rest of the aromas. A bit of anise adds to the complexity. The nose is ridiculous. It's as if the earth was damp from over saturation of fruit instead of morning dew.
  
  P: The expected spectrum of dark red and blue fruit that, when blended together, becomes almost black. A badass note of tar and graphite that plays really well with the fruit and a dark core of earth. Pleasureful bitterness of tree bark, graphite, tar and steeped tea lingers into the long finish. Powerful fruit but with the proper amount of character to keep things in balance.
  
  Enjoy now for some tasty hedonism or cellar for another 3-6 years for better integration and some sanding down of any rough edges.

  Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment

• Options

  • Post a Comment
  • View I'd Rather Be Drinking Wine's profile
  • Report Issue

  9/23/2023 - I'd Rather Be Drinking Wine Likes this wine: 96 Points

  WOW! This is what I love in a wine! Hitting on all cylinders for my palate! Plus, if the fruit holds up (and no reason whatsoever to think it won't), and the tertiary characters become more pronounced, this could easily flirt with perfection!
  
  Nose showed perfumed purple flowers with sweet dark fruit, some anise and lavender notes as well as some forest floor, earth and baking spice. Palate shows black, blue and red fruit in a kaleidoscope of flavors, with dark and milk chocolate, along with some tobacco, tar and earthy notes, all wrapped in a soft, velvety mouthfeel (that I love). Decanting Queen, a fellow CTer, once said "This is why I drink wine!" and that statement holds true for this wine! Easy 96+ for me, and should improve on that!

  1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment

• Options

  • Post a Comment
  • View csimm's profile
  • Report Issue

  7/27/2023 - csimm wrote: 92 Points

  Giuseppe's (Scottsdale, AZ): In a predominantly French folly of bottles at the table, the Immortal was clearly the Yankee gym rat trying to push its way through the patiently waiting line at the local Parisian jazz club. Huge, sweet, and powerful, there is nothing subtle about the Immortal, especially to a bunch of palates that had been Euro-tuned for the last few hours to more nuanced versions of the fermented grape. I mean, in the sense that it is surely a grand finale to the otherwise geeky tasting experience, the Immortal is in fact a blowout. Blackberry, whole milk, chocolate, and spice, the Immortal was never short on opulence and decadence.
  
  Overall, it’s just too sweet for me, even when I’m in my mega Napa Cab Tusk-type of mood. This behemoth could use more cut and focus in my estimation. It’s well made and all, and I truly appreciate the lavish delivery here, but even in the Napa Cult Cab world, it suffers from an overdone demeanor that feels manipulated. It’s a movie theater chewy chocolate chunk of a wine, so for that, dig in and watch the show. Those holding bottles may want to hold for a few years for a better amalgamation of flavors. It’ll always be a massively gooey wine, but it stands to gain better charm with some short-term cellaring. After that, it’ll likely be time to drink up. I don’t suspect the longevity of this big butterfly will be incredibly elongated once it crests at peak after 2026-ish. Score higher if you are more of a sugar cone type, and less of a plain cake or waffle cone person.

  3 people found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment

View all 10 Community Tasting Notes

Professional reviews have copyrights and you can view them here for your personal use only as private content. To view pro reviews you must either subscribe to a pre-integrated publication or manually enter reviews below. Learn more.