Winemaker Notes
The 2016 Carter Cellars available only in Magnum format is sourced from the very best barrels, out of the very best slices of the Beckstoffer To Kalon Vineyard. Year after year this is a massive skyscraper of a wine, possesses huge notes of dark blackberry and dense blueberry fruit, matched with roasted flavors in both the aromatic and tasting profiles. The finish is endless in this super-intense, rich wine. Like all of Carter Cellars' Beckstoffer To Kalons the sweetness of finely grained tannins and the emerging complexity permits enjoyment at this early stage, but let it age for 10 to 25 years to see the best of what this wine has to offer. As always, extremely limited, so act with haste.
Professional Ratings
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
The 2016 Cabernet Sauvignon Beckstoffer To Kalon The G T O is very deep purple-black in color. Bam! Out of the gate it produces an incredibly alluring nose of freshly crushed black cherries, blackberry compote, blackcurrant cordial and licorice with nuances of violets, fertile loam, black truffles, unsmoked cigars and a waft of beef drippings. Big, full-bodied and powerful in the mouth—without the least bit of heaviness—the palate gives an awe-inspiring array of earth, black fruit preserves and floral layers, supported by a rock-solid frame of ripe, grainy tannins, finishing epically long and with fantastic freshness. This is To Kalon giving its all!
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.
Home to some of the most sought-after Cabernet Sauvignon in America, Napa Valley’s Oakville district stretches across the center of Napa's valley floor and foothills between the Vaca and Mayacamas Mountains. This AVA is home to the legendary To Kalon Vineyard and Martha's Vineyard, as well as many powerhouse wineries including Screaming Eagle, Silver Oak, Robert Mondavi, Opus One, Far Niente and Groth.
The climate is generally warm and agreeable, resulting in year after year of favorable vintages. Summer days see a gentle tug of war between warmer inland air and the cool air coming in from the San Pablo Bay, creating an ideal environment to grow red varieties. Oakville's diverse soils, namely ancient sea bedrock, clay and gravel, are well-drained, and perfect for high-caliber viticulture.
Cabernet here is often bottled varietally but is also popular in Bordeaux Blends. Oakville wines are known for their silky, sensual textures, structured tannins, dark and brooding fruit and lovely aromatics. These age-worthy and prestigious wines are favored by collectors throughout the world.