Winemaker Notes
Blend: 76% Cabernet Sauvignon, 23% Petit Verdot, 1% Cabernet Franc
Professional Ratings
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Wine Enthusiast
This is a widely available and reliably satisfying sip, offering dark and juicy aromas of baked berry along with toastier notes of hard spice and roasted cocoa nibs. The beefy palate is loaded with blackberry, roasted meat and rich fudge flavors, but it's the persistent acidity and tannic grip that elevates the experience.
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
The 2020 Cabernet Sauvignon Reserve, made entirely with free-run juice, is blended with 23% Petit Verdot, 1% Merlot and 1% Cabernet Franc and was matured for 16 months in 50% new French oak. Deep ruby-purple, it offers savory aromas of black cherries, charcuterie, cedar, mushroom, tobacco, dried herbs and pencil shavings. The medium-bodied palate is chalky and fresh with savory fruits and a mineral-driven finish. Best After 2023.
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Connoisseurs' Guide
Fully ripe and generously fruited with a strong blackcurrant and black cherry presence evident at every turn and subtle hints of dark chocolate and creamy, well-integrated oak adding to its overall impression of ongoing richness, this ample young Cabernet is less overtly tannic and thus a bit easier to access than Daou’s Estate offering from the same vintage. That is not to say that it will not benefit from further age, but, here, midterm cellaring of some three to five years should find this one approaching its flavorful peak.
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Decanter
A premium Cabernet Sauvignon that drinks above its price point. Dark notes of blackberry, black plum, black pepper and black liquorice on both nose and palate. Chalky tannins, a hint of pencil shavings and minerality add interesting secondary flavours, contributing to the wines complexity. A strong and persistent finish.
Brothers Georges Daou and Daniel Daou set forth across the globe to find an unrivaled terroir for producing Cabernet Sauvignon, a quest that led them to a place of foretold greatness: DAOU Mountain in the Adelaida District of Paso Robles. DAOU Family Estates is a family owned and operated winery committed to producing collectible, world-class wine to rival the most respected appellations. Situated on a 212-acre hilltop estate in the Adelaida District of Paso Robles, this remarkable mountain was once described by André Tchelistcheff, legendary winemaking authority, as “a jewel of ecological elements.”
DAOU Mountain stands alone at an elevation of 2,200 feet, rising from the heart of the Adelaida District in the rugged coastal range west of Paso Robles. The steep slopes here reach up to 56 percent, with uniform exposure to the elements across the estate. It is a terroir of power, purity and symmetry, with every natural asset necessary to pursue the perfect Cabernet Sauvignon—including calcareous clay soils that emulate Bordeaux’s Right Bank and a climate that mirrors St. Helena.
There is a power within this Mountain they call home. It is a power that can turn mere raindrops and roots into extraordinary wines—and into lasting relationships—that will endure for decades. Everyday the winery strives to create an experience as beautiful as these wines, ensuring that everyone feels like family. There is nothing more important than human connection.
As Paso Robles, California has soared in number of wineries and gained in popularity, Cabernet Sauvignon has firmly taken root as the region’s number one varietal. Alone, it accounts for just over 40% of plantings and is grown throughout both the western and eastern sides of the appellation. Though viticulture here dates back to the 18th century, Cabernet Sauvignon didn’t emerge as a significant grape here until the 1970’s. But since then it has definitely made up for lost time.
Legendary winemaker and consultant Andre Tchelistcheff first recognized Paso’s potential with Cabernet Sauvignon in the early 1960’s. The calcareous soil and dramatic diurnal temperature changes of Paso’s westside particularly intrigued him. Today modern winemaking techniques and focused experimentation with various clones, rootstocks and vineyard strategies optimize the region's ideal combination of soil and climate to deliver the best fruit possible.
The results are evident in the glass. Paso Robles Cabernet Sauvignon can be mesmerizing, with rich aromas and flavors of blackberry, cassis, black cherry, graphite, toasty oak, vanilla and spice. The structure, balance and unbridled opulence of these wines impress from first sip to last. Not surprisingly, Paso Robles Cabernet Sauvignons have steadily grown in reputation, not just in the U.S., but around the world.