Aiken Rutherford Cabernet Sauvignon 2013
-
Robert
Parker -
Wilfred
Wong -
James
Suckling
Product Details
Your Rating
Somm Note
Winemaker Notes
Professional Ratings
-
Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
The superstar in the portfolio is the 2013 Cabernet Sauvignon Rutherford, which comes entirely from the well-known Morisoli Vineyard in Rutherford. Aged in 100% new French oak, it’s not a big cuvée (only 105 cases), but exhibits a dense purple color and a beautiful nose of white flowers, damp earth, forest floor, blackberries and blackcurrant fruit. Some graphite also makes an appearance, as does some underbrush. This is a beauty -- full-bodied, multi-dimensional, and capable of lasting 20 or more years.
-
Wilfred Wong of Wine.com
COMMENTARY: Joel Aiken, at the age of 28, was promoted to Winemaker at Beaulieu Vineyard in 1985. The brand flourished in his 27-year tenure. Now in charge of his brand, Aiken Wines, Joel has entered a new chapter in his career. The 2013 Aiken Cabernet Sauvignon is an excellent effort. TASTING NOTES: This wine is focused, bright and fresh, with outstanding depth. Its aromas of ripe, red fruit and mineral should pair it well with a grilled T-bone steak. (Tasted: July 18, 2019, San Francisco, CA)
-
James Suckling
A red with tile, walnut and berry character. Full to medium body, coarse, velvety tannins and a fresh finish.
Other Vintages
2010-
Wine
Enthusiast
A noble variety bestowed with both power and concentration, Cabernet Sauvignon enjoys success all over the globe, its best examples showing potential to age beautifully for decades. Cabernet Sauvignon flourishes in Bordeaux's Medoc where it is often blended with Merlot and smaller amounts of some combination of Cabernet Franc, Malbecand Petit Verdot. In the Napa Valley, ‘Cab’ is responsible for some of the world’s most prestigious, age-worthy and sought-after “cult” wines. Somm Secret—DNA profiling in 1997 revealed that Cabernet Sauvignon was born from a spontaneous crossing of Cabernet Franc and Sauvignon Blanc in 17th century southwest France.
The Rutherford sub-region of Napa Valley centers on the town of Rutherford and covers some of Napa Valley’s finest vineyard real estate, spanning from the Mayacamas in the west, to the Vaca Mountains on the other side of the valley.
Inside of the Rutherford AVA, bordering the Mayacamas, is a stretch of uplands called the Rutherford Bench. (These bench lands technically run the length of Oakville as well). Mountain runoff creates deep, well-drained, alluvial soils on the bench, giving vine roots plenty of reason to permeate deep into the ground. The result is wine with great structure and complexity.
Rutherford Cabernet Sauvingons and Bordeaux Blends garner substantial attention for their enticing fragrances of dusty earth and dried herbs, broad and juicy mid-palates and lush and fine-grained tannins. The sub-appellation claims some of the valley’s most prized vineyards today, namely Caymus, Rubicon and Beckstoffer Georges III.
It is also home to Napa’s most influential and historic personalities. Thomas Rutherford, responsible for the appellation's name, made serious investments here in grape growing and wine production between the years of 1850 to 1880. Gustave Niebaum purchased a large swath of land and completed his winery in 1887, calling it “Inglenook.” Today this remains the oldest bonded winery in California. Georges Latour founded Beaulieu Vineyard in 1900, making it the oldest continuous winery in the state. Latour also hired the famous enologist, André Tchelistcheff, a man credited for single-handedly defining the modern Napa winemaking style.