Winemaker Notes
Deep ruby in color with aromas of sweet vanilla, ripe currants, black cherry and toasty oak. This wine exhibits flavors of cassis, dark plum, caramel and hints of dark chocolate. Soft, yet plentiful tannins balance out the velvety, layered mouthfeel.
Professional Ratings
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Wine & Spirits
Charlie Barra died at the age of 92 in June 2019, and this was his last vintage. Having grown grapes at his Redwood Valley estate since 1955, he proudly touted his organic farming, certified since the 1990s, practiced since the beginning. He described his vineyard site as the benchlands of the headwaters of the Russian River and started bottling his own estate wines in 1997. Randy Meyer made this 2018 for Barra, a cabernet with a youthful, bright purple color that seems to carry through to the bright and luscious purple fruit. The tannins are herbal and dry—for one taster, they brought to mind sumac—but there’s plenty of sweet fruit to last through them and accompany fajitas, a sirloin burger or filet mignon. This is a terrific glass of wine to raise in Barra’s memory.
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.
A large and diverse appellation within California’s North Coast AVA, Mendocino is home to several smaller sub-regions—most notably the Anderson Valley. This scenic region, with rolling hills covered in redwood forests as well as vineyards, is one of the world’s top producers of certified organically-grown grapes. Due to wide geographical and climatic variation, a vast array of wine styles can be found here.