Winemaker Notes
Professional Ratings
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
Beringer’s 2005 Cabernet Sauvignon Private Reserve comes from the top selection from all their different holdings, with each vineyard aged separately for close to two years, then blended for quality. This blend of 95% Cabernet Sauvignon and 5% Cabernet Franc is a gorgeous example of the Private Reserve. Of course, it probably suffers from the fact that Beringer is part of a gigantic international conglomerate, but this is just a stunning wine – inky purple, with plenty of cassis, a hint of espresso, subtle background oak and forest notes. The color is opaque and the wine full-bodied and opulent, with sweet tannin and a multilayered mouthfeel. It has silky tannins, good freshness and uplifting acid, which should ensure a considerable longevity of 15-20 additional years. This is a stunner.
Rating: 95+
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Wine & Spirits
A great vintage of Private Reserve, this reflects the sensibilities of two winemakers: Ed Sbragia, who has shepherded the blend for three decades, and Laurie Hook, who joined Sbragia in 1986. Hook's influence on the Beringer style has been subtle but significant over the past several years. The tightness of this wine and the more overt minerality in its tannin provide a defined arc of flavor, with firmer edges than often appeared in the smooth, sleek Private Reserve blends of the past. A large portion of the wine comes from Howell Mountain (Bancroft Ranch, Steinhauer and Rancho del Oso make up 60 percent), with another 25 percent from Beringer's St. Helena Home Ranch. The detail in the tannin shapes the complexity of the wine, the dark fruit and licorice flavors smoothed by oak. It's a formidable cabernet, deserving of ten years in the cellar to reach peak drinking.
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Wine Spectator
Aging gracefully, with seductive aromas and complex flavors of blackberry, wild berry, currant, spice, cedar and licorice. Ends with a long, clean, refreshing finish that offers touches of crushed rock and loamy soil.
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.