Winemaker Notes
Professional Ratings
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
The 1997 Cabernet Sauvignon Reserve is outstanding. This full-bodied effort exhibits a deep plum/purple color, high tannin, and gorgeously rich, concentrated, floral, and black currant fruit flavors intermixed with mineral, wood smoke, and spice box. It is what the French would call a serious vin de garde. Give it 4-5 years of cellaring; it should keep for 30 years, as these wines are built to last. Anticipated maturity: 2005-2030.
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Wine Enthusiast
Meaty and also jammy, with popcorn and cedar aromas. Dry and complex, typical of the winery’s style, and mildly astringent. The tannins are starching at this point, but should fade. Given time, the red fruit should emerge and conquer the youthful astringency.
One of the most prestigious wines of the world capable of great power and grace, Napa Valley Cabernet is a leading force in the world of fine, famous, collectible red wine. Today the Napa Valley and Cabernet Sauvignon are so intrinsically linked that it is difficult to discuss one without the other. But it wasn’t until the 1970s that this marriage came to light; sudden international recognition rained upon Napa with the victory of the Stag’s Leap Wine Cellars 1973 Cabernet Sauvignon in the 1976 Judgement of Paris.
Cabernet Sauvignon undoubtedly dominates Napa Valley today, covering half of the land under vine, commanding the highest prices per ton and earning the most critical acclaim. Cabernet Sauvignon’s structure, acidity, capacity to thrive in multiple environs and ability to express nuances of vintage make it perfect for Napa Valley where incredible soil and geographical diversity are found and the climate is perfect for grape growing. Within the Napa Valley lie many smaller sub-AVAs that express specific characteristics based on situation, slope and soil—as a perfect example, Rutherford’s famous dust or Stags Leap District's tart cherry flavors.