1998 Renaissance Cabernet Sauvignon Première Cuvée

Community Tasting Notes (4) Avg Score: 92.5 points

• Options

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

  1/29/2024 - Nojomoschwa Likes this wine: 93 Points

  This was drinking beautifully out of magnum. Really does taste like an old Claret. Nobody thought it could be from California (I poured it blind). Definitely on the lighter side for Cabernet, but not in a bad way. Lovely over the course of a meal with friends. Great value, too at $107 for the magnum, given the cultish nature of the wine…sorry, I had to get one easy pun in there.

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

• Options

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

  7/30/2023 - HandmadeHomemade Likes this wine:

  Slow ox for 3hrs, out of a magnum. Pours with some garnet, aromas of fresh and dried black and red fruits, dried mint and eucalyptus, some old oaky influence. Med-full body, med + acid, med tannin- dry, herbal finish with a silty body supported nicely by the fruit. Showing really well for such a lean year. From a magnum, this has some hang time on the plateau.

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

• Options

  • Post a Comment
  • View mvande21's profile
  • Report Issue

  3/5/2022 - mvande21 wrote: 92 Points

  Short decants from magnum. Good color with minimal bricking. Muted nose. Tertiary notes of black current, plum, dried fruits, charcoal and minerals. Medium body, smooth. Good acidity, grainy tannins and a medium length finish. Similar to an old claret. Consumed over three days with consistent notes.

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

• Options

  • Post a Comment
  • View Wicker Parker's profile
  • Report Issue

  11/6/2009 - Wicker Parker wrote:

  A fascinating wine — at the first pop of the cork this smells just like a Renaissance cabernet, with deep aromas of black currant and worcestershire, but on the palate it drinks almost like a young Barbaresco, very tannic yet somehow light. The rough edges abate somewhat with just a bit of air and the palate deepens with flavors to match the aromas. On night two, the flavor of cassis comes to the fore and the acidity is more prominent, too, although the weight has dropped and the finish is slightly thin. Black cherry and black pepper flavors come to the fore on the third night and if the finish is still a bit short, the wine seems a touch more focused: the tannins no longer have a sweet quality, the palate is silkier and just a touch more substantive than it was the previous night, and dried herbs show up on the finish. There's plenty of structure and acidity in this baby (pH is 3.4) so while it's perfectly fine to open this now, no need to rush. 82% cab sauv, 7% merlot, 6% cab franc, 5% malbec.

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

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.