Winemaker Notes
This elegant powerhouse hails from highly-esteemed, volcanic Napa areas such as the Pritchard Hill area, Howell Mountain, Atlas Peak, and Hertelendy's very own Rockwell Ridge estate vineyard (35 feet below Howell Mountain). Barrel aged 23 months in 90% New French and Hungarian Oak.
Blend: 90% Cabernet Sauvignon, 8% Petit Verdot, 1% Malbec, 1% Merlot
Professional Ratings
-
Jeb Dunnuck
The 2018 Cabernet Sauvignon is based on 90% Cabernet Sauvignon, 8% Petit Verdot, and the balance Malbec and Merlot. Beautiful crème de cassis, blueberries, flowers, cedarwood, tobacco, and rocky, mineral-like notes emerge from the glass, and it hits the palate with full-bodied richness, a layered, seamless texture, building tannins, and a great finish. This rich, powerful 2018 has the vintage's purity and freshness, stunning overall balance, and the class to evolve for 20 years or more.
-
Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
The very deep purple-black colored 2018 Cabernet Sauvignon is a blend of 90% Cabernet Sauvignon, 8% Petit Verdot, 1% Malbec and 1% Merlot. It opens with vibrant fresh blackberry, cassis and redcurrant jelly scents with wafts of pencil lead, tar and fragrant earth. Medium to full-bodied, the palate is chock-full of bright, crunchy red and black fruits, supported by grainy tannins and lovely freshness, finishing long and earthy.
Rating: 95+ -
Wine Enthusiast
With thick tannins and a big style on offer, this wine spent 23 months in barrel and is undeniably opulent, concentrated and generous in oak. Black fruit dominates around secondary notes of dried herb, clove and pleasant layers of earth. With structure and complexity, it should do well in the cellar; enjoy best 2028 through 2038.
Cellar Selection -
James Suckling
Blackberries, cocoa, dried herbs and crushed gravel. It’s medium-bodied with fine, powdery tannins. Concentrated and focused.
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.