Winemaker Notes
The result of a nearly perfect, long and cool ripening season (and oblivious to the Covid chaos swirling around it), the 2020 was picked and in the barn fully two and a half weeks before the Glass Fire broke out. Industrial-grade air filters kept smoke out of the winery as the wines went down to barrels. Corison is so grateful, and relieved, to present the lovely 2020. This wine is wildly complex with tart cherry, blueberry, red and black currants, raspberry, plum and boysenberry fruit, fleshed out with notes of baking spices and peppermint. The tannins are characteristically polite yet grippy. Mineral notes add lift and the evolving violet perfume is so pretty.
Professional Ratings
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Decanter
Medium to full-bodied, beautiful and restrained, with savoury aromatics of fennel, black liquorice, cedar, and black currants. Soft, satiny blackberry fruits are lifted by fine-grained yet supple tannins while a purity of fruit guides the palate to a long, tobacco-tinged finish marked by a mineral-freshness that beckons sip after sip—100% Cabernet aged 18 months in 50% new French oak barrels.
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Wine Enthusiast
Classic balance and a little restraint characterize this firmly structured, deeply flavored wine that brings black cherries, cranberries and black pepper to the front, backed by slightly tangy acidity and texturizing tannins that will help it mature nicely. Best 2028–2038.
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Wine & Spirits
This supple and gracious cabernet reflects none of the challenges of the 2020 season—from the outbreak of a pandemic in the spring to the devastating Glass Fire in the fall. Cathy Corison’s vines delivered healthy fruit several weeks before the fire hit the valley, and her 2020 offers Napa Valley satisfaction in a ripe, voluptuous red. The tannins have a plum-skin essence that lasts, along with heady scents of fraises des bois.
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Wilfred Wong of Wine.com
With her early career stops at Freemark Abbey (1978) and winemaking positions at Yverdon (1979-1980) and Chappellet in the 1980s, she certainly has left her imprint on the Napa Valley. Oh, and moonlighting at Staglin, York Creek, and Long Meadow Ranch as the Corison Winery was born. I grew up on these wines as I learned what Cathy's wines are all about. The 2020 Corison Cabernet Sauvignon exhibits richness and elegance on the palate. This wine offers aromas and flavors of stylish black fruits, alluring black fruits, and stones-in-the-desert. Serve it with Thai-style lamb stir fry. (Tasted: August 26, 2024, San Francisco, CA)
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Wine Spectator
Distinctive, with a vivid display of mulberry, pomegranate and plum fruit aromas and flavors that glide through easily, carried by a silky but persistent structure. Reveals nice floral nuances through the finish, with a late twinge of iron, too.
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James Suckling
Quite fruit-expressive and floral, with spiced dark cherries, rust, baked plums, hibiscus and violet extract on the nose. Rich and fruity, with tart cherries, cassis and dried herbs on the palate. Full-bodied and juicy, with silky tannins that smoothen it out. Drink or hold.
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Jeb Dunnuck
The base 2020 Cabernet Sauvignon is pretty, with a medium-bodied, elegant style as well as lots of sappy herbs, flowers, and currant-driven aromatics, fine tannins, and nicely integrated acidity. Drink this balanced, satisfying, old school Cabernet over the coming 10-12 years or so. This Cuv e spent 18 months in 50% new oak.
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
Corison fans should enjoy the 2020 Cabernet Sauvignon. Gentle herbal streaks run through the wine's classic black cherries and cassis fruit. Medium-bodied, sleek and streamlined, it shows vibrant energy and ample length, framed by gentle, silky tannins.
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.