Winemaker Notes
Professional Ratings
-
Wilfred Wong of Wine.com
The full-flavored and rewarding 2013 Hall Ellie's Cabernet Sauvignon sends a laser beam of heavenly flavors onto the palate. The wine's dried herbs, bright black fruits, and sweet spices stay bright, intense, and focused on its flavors. Pair it with a rosemary-infused roast leg of lamb. (Tasted: August 25, 2017, San Francisco, CA)
-
Wine Enthusiast
This wine opens with big, full-bodied and extracted flavors, highlighted by black cherry, smoked meat and clove. Blended with 4% Merlot, it exudes textural complexity and velvety lushness, with length and breadth to spare. Within its fountain of power exists a strong sense of grace, accented by aromas of wild violet and forested earth.
-
Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
Lastly, the 2013 Cabernet Sauvignon Ellies is a blend of 96% Cabernet Sauvignon and 4% Merlot. Once again, it has an opaque purple color, a gorgeous nose of graphite, crème de cassis, blackberry and new saddle leather. Full-bodied, powerful, unevolved and seeming much more backward than the other two, this wine seems built for the long haul and should be cellared for another 3-4 years before consumption. It has at least 25 to 30 years of aging potential.
93+ points -
Wine Spectator
Rich and juicy, with a zesty core of blackberry, wild berry, spice, cedary oak and anise. Broad and expansive on the palate, long and lingering in the mouth. Drink now through 2024.
Hall Wines is located in Napa Valley and employs organic small-vine viticulture, precision winemaking, wild-yeast fermentation and micro-block blending to fully extract the purity and quintessence of Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon. Their estate vineyards encompass more than 300 acres of classic Bordeaux varietals: Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Sauvignon Blanc. The Halls have a strong respect for the environment and a commitment to cutting edge technology to yield the highest quality grapes. Through meticulous attention to detail in the vineyards, Hall wines are able to express the unique and diverse character of Napa Valley's soils and climate.
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.