Winemaker Notes
Professional Ratings
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Wine Spectator
Cedar, vanilla, spice and currant aromas give way to similar flavors that are full-bodied and rich. The wonderful proportion of oak and tannins balances the solid core of supple fruit.
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
For readers lucky enough to find any, the dark ruby/purple-colored 1987 Cabernet Sauvignon offers an intensely fragrant, vanillin-scented, cedary, rich, curranty, sweet nose. The wine is expansively flavored, rich, medium to full-bodied, with soft tannins, admirable length, and a sense of balance. The style of this deliciously forward, round, tasty Cabernet might be fairly compared with Bordeaux's Pichon-Lalande.
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.