Diamond Creek Gravelly Meadow Cabernet Sauvignon 2018

Crushed stone fruit, blackcurrants, bay leaf, iodine and seaweed. Full-bodied with blue fruit, firm tannins and super length. It’s austere and so focused. Great length. Needs time to open and show its true self. Harkens back to the late 1970s.

The Cabernets of this producer invariably vie for top honors among all those that come our way every vintage, and, the only question we ever seem to have is which one will ultimately take its place at the head of the class. This year, it is the one from the winery’s Gravelly Meadow block, and the 2018 version is nothing short of a Napa Valley classic. It is deep, it is complex and it is impeccably crafted stuff that, while very solidly structured and balanced to age famously for upwards of twenty years, already shows the first gleanings of the beauty inherent in genuinely great Cabernet.

This pebbly portion of the estate vineyard consists of five acres, originally planted in 1968. With small percentages of Merlot, Malbec and Petit Verdot, it is woody in forest, graphite and clove, with a silky, rounded and expansive palate of rich, red fruit. With balanced acidity and structure, it has a long, spicy finish of clove and will do well in the cellar. Best after 2028. Cellar Selection

The 2018 Cabernet Sauvignon Gravelly Meadow is a blend of 78.5% Cabernet Sauvignon, 8.4% Merlot, 8% Malbec and 5.1% Petit Verdot. Deep garnet-purple in color, it slips effortlessly from the glass, singing of ripe black cherries, black raspberries and cassis, plus hints of red currants, roses, cinnamon stick and garrigue. The medium to full-bodied palate delivers lovely freshness, offering bags of perfumed black fruits in the mouth, beautifully supported by fine-grained tannins, finishing long with lots of soft-spoken floral and mineral whispers. This perfumed beauty wears the 2018 vintage stamp well, presenting a more delicate expression of this vineyard—one that I love! Rating: 94+

Ripe and a bit showy in feel, with a blast of cassis and plum purée notes liberally laced with violet, singed applewood and red licorice notes. Then a nice mix of iron and warm stone accents cuts in on the finish, pulling everything together as the violet note takes an encore. Best from 2022 through 2038.

A powerful and tense vintage of Gravelly Meadow, this cabernet emerges from its oak to present a summery, sunny side of Diamond Mountain. It begins to take shape in scents of fresh blackcurrant, complete with leaves and stems, a little liqueurlike against the grip of the tannins, finishing bright and racy.