Winemaker Notes
Professional Ratings
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Wine Enthusiast
Made from 98% Cabernet Sauvignon, with no Merlot or Cabernet Franc for the first time, the ’05 Rubicon tastes bigger and more impenetrable than any previous vintage. It’s thick and heavy at this time, with furry tannins and undeniably ripe flavors of blackberries, black currants, cherries, violets, chocolate and cedar, and a tang of melted minerals. Desperately needs time in the cellar. Nowhere near ready for at least four years, and that may be conservative. Tasted three times, and better each time, a seriously good sign, and potentially a perfect wine.
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Connoisseurs' Guide
Its altogether compelling aromas of concentrated cassis, careful oak and distinctive "Rutherford dust" spice immediately signal that something special is going on here, and this head-turning wine more than follows through on its promise with genuinely layered, exceptionally deep flavors whose immense and incisive varietal fruit is met by a broad range of complexing spice, oak and loam elements. Big, balanced and appropriately tannic, this year's Rubicon is years away from reaching its full potential and is very much meant for the cellar.
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
Unquestionably the finest wine I have ever tasted from this estate owned by well-known movie director Francis Ford-Coppola, the dense ruby/purple-colored 2005 Rubicon possesses wonderfully sweet cassis and black cherry fruit interwoven with dusty, loamy soil, licorice, and spice box notes. Opulent and full-bodied with abundant but sweet, velvety tannins, this 2005 is just beginning to develop its secondary nuances, and should evolve for 2-3 decades. Kudos, this is a superb achievement!
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Wine Spectator
Supple-textured, ripe, rich and fleshy, with spice, currant, black cherry and wild berry fruit that's well-proportioned, drinking easily already. Firms up nicely on the finish, where the tannins have just the right touch of grip. Cabernet Sauvignon and Petit Verdot. Best from 2009 through 2016.
Undoubtedly proving its merit over and over, Napa Valley is a now a leading force in the world of prestigious red wine regions. Though Cabernet Sauvignon dominates Napa Valley, other red varieties certainly thrive here. Important but often overlooked include Merlot and other Bordeaux varieties well-regarded on their own as well as for their blending capacities. Very old vine Zinfandel represents an important historical stronghold for the region and Pinot noir is produced in the cooler southern parts, close to the San Pablo Bay.
Perfectly situated running north to south, the valley acts as a corridor, pulling cool, moist air up from the San Pablo Bay in the evenings during the hot days of the growing season, which leads to even and slow grape ripening. Furthermore the valley claims over 100 soil variations including layers of volcanic, gravel, sand and silt—a combination excellent for world-class red wine production.