Winemaker Notes
The 2015 Crown Point Estate Selection is a classically styled Bordeaux blend that not only reflects the true character of the vineyard, but also captures the unique nature of the vintage. Aromatically this wine shows off nuanced expressions of blackberries, bay leaf, and pain grillé- while peppery spice, violets, and black currant highlight the palate. Elegance personified. Structured and refined- the precise, succulent tannins are indicative of a wine with a long life ahead of it in the cellar. Drink with confidence now through decades to come.
Professional Ratings
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Wine Enthusiast
Dark and thick in appearance, this estate blend from winemaker Adam Henkel and proprietor Roger Bower shows a tremendous cassis aroma, with splashes of smoke, dried purple flowers and baking spice. The palate begins with a lavish entry of polished tannins that still have some teeth, providing tension that carries the dark fruit flavors deep into the finish.
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
A blend of 70% Cabernet Sauvignon with smaller portions of Malbec, Cabernet Franc, Petit Verdot and Merlot, the 2015 Estate Selection, from a low-yielding, concentrated vintage, is drinking beautifully now but still has plenty of life ahead. Medium ruby-purple in color, it has pure scents of blackcurrants with touches of violet, cigars and graphite. The full-bodied palate is seamless and detailed, with a flourish of savory accents and fantastic layering and length.
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Jeb Dunnuck
The deep, inky colored 2015 Estate Selection is a blend of 71% Cabernet Sauvignon, 9% each of Cabernet Franc, Petit Verdot, and Malbec, and the rest Merlot, aged 26 months in new French oak. This beauty boasts a fabulous bouquet of blackcurrants, melted licorice, cigar wrapper, and tobacco leaf, with more spice and dried flower notes coming through with time in the glass. Deep, rich, full-bodied, and elegant, with beautiful purity as well as ripe tannin, it certainly has the class to drink nicely today, yet will be even better with 2-3 years of bottle age and keep for two decades.
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James Suckling
You can’t fault this powerful, cabernet-based red for lack of intensity, because the blackcurrant and forest-berry aromas blast out of the glass, and on the palate it packs a big punch of fruit and rather fine dry tannins. There’s also fresh acidity that stops this from coming off heavy and drives the intense finish. Try to wait until at least 2021.
One of the world’s most classic and popular styles of red wine, Bordeaux-inspired blends have spread from their homeland in France to nearly every corner of the New World. Typically based on either Cabernet Sauvignon or Merlot and supported by Cabernet Franc, Malbec and Petit Verdot, the best of these are densely hued, fragrant, full of fruit and boast a structure that begs for cellar time. Somm Secret—Blends from Bordeaux are generally earthier compared to those from the New World, which tend to be fruit-dominant.
On the eastern end of the Santa Ynez Valley, the rolling hills of the tiny Happy Canyon AVA produce top quality reds from Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, Syrah and whites from Sauvignon blanc. The region’s low-nutrient soil grows smaller vines and in turn, higher quality wine grapes.