Col Solare Cabernet Sauvignon 2016
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Jeb
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James
Suckling -
Robert
Parker -
Wine &
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Spectator
Product Details
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Somm Note
Winemaker Notes
This 2016 Cabernet Sauvignon offers aromas of black cherry, currants, cinnamon and rose petals with subtle notes of vanilla and milk chocolate. Tannins are rich and refined on the finish, a characteristic of Red Mountain fruit, with flavors of berries, dried fruit and cocoa that lingers forever.
Professional Ratings
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Jeb Dunnuck
Stunning stuff, and possibly the finest vintage to date for this wine, the 2016 Cabernet Sauvignon comes all from the estate on Red Mountain and is 94% Cabernet Sauvignon and 6% Cabernet Franc brought up all in new French oak. Gorgeous notes of crème de cassis, toasted spices, white flowers, and subtle oak all emerge from this super-rich, concentrated, full-bodied Cabernet that stays perfectly balanced and elegant. It has plenty of upfront appeal and shows a soft, sexy profile, yet it has ample tannins, remarkable purity, and a great finish, all promising 20+ years of longevity. Hats off to the team for this killer wine.
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James Suckling
This has a distinctive nose with dark cherries and blackberries with stylishly cedary oak and a wealth of spiced currants. The palate has a very plush, powerful and well defined tannin structure, bathed in rich ripe-fruit flavor. 94% cabernet sauvignon and 6% cabernet franc
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
The 2016 Cabernet Sauvignon has a dark, opaque color and a concentrated core of ripe and dusty fruits on the nose. Medium to full-bodied, the wine's dusty features continue in the mouth, with soft black and blue fruits that are chewy and grippy on the palate. The wine finishes long and with fewer tannins than I remember from previous years. It's a lovely wine and will cellar well for years to come. 6,427 cases were made.
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Wine & Spirits
Wildly powerful and monolithic, this develops a warm glow of fruit to pierce the darkness, like a light beam in a mine shaft. The violet and purple fruit flavors are focused and concentrated, the texture sleek and guided by sumptuous oak to a long finish. It’s built for the long haul.
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Wine Spectator
Harmonious and elegantly structured, with expressive blackberry, black olive and toasted spice flavors that build richness toward refined tannins. Drink now through 2025.
Other Vintages
2019-
Robert
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James
Suckling -
Wine
Enthusiast
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Jeb
Dunnuck -
Wine &
Spirits -
James
Suckling -
Robert
Parker -
Wine
Spectator
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Jeb
Dunnuck -
Robert
Parker -
James
Suckling -
Wine
Spectator
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Jeb
Dunnuck -
James
Suckling -
Robert
Parker -
Wine
Spectator - Decanter
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Wine &
Spirits
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Robert
Parker -
Wine &
Spirits -
James
Suckling -
Wine
Enthusiast
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 coveted source of top quality red grapes among premier Washington producers, the Red Mountain AVA is actually the smallest appellation in the state. As its name might suggest, it is actually neither a mountain nor is it composed of red earth. Instead the appellation is an anticline of the Yakima fold belt, a series of geologic folds that define a number of viticultural regions in the surrounding area. It is on the eastern edge of Yakima Valley with slopes facing southwest towards the Yakima River, ideal for the ripening of grapes. The area’s springtime proliferation of cheatgrass, which has a reddish color, actually gives the area the name, "Red" Mountain.
Red Mountain produces some of the most mineral-driven, tannic and age-worthy red wines of Washington and there are a few reasons for this. It is just about the hottest appellation with normal growing season temperatures commonly reaching above 90F. The soil is particularly poor in nutrients and has a high pH, which results in significantly smaller berry sizes compared to varietal norms. The low juice to skin ratio in smaller berries combined with the strong, dry summer winds, leads to higher tannin levels in Red Mountain grapes.
The most common red grape varieties here are Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Cabernet Franc and Syrah, among others. Limited white varieties are grown, namely Sauvignon blanc.
The reds of the area tend to express dark black and blue fruit, deep concentration, complex textures, high levels of tannins and as previously noted, have good aging capabilities.