Winemaker Notes
The 2020 Matchbook Estate Bottled Cabernet Sauvignon is crafted from grapes grown on the red gravel soils in the winery's Dunnigan Hills vineyard. The wine opens with classic Cabernet aromas of chocolate, tobacco, violets and leather. Plush flavors of blackberry, black cherry and mocha are backed with sweet oak and vanilla. The juicy texture is mouth filling and mingles with the fine, dusty tannins in the finish.
This full-bodied Cabernet has the substance to pair with the big flavors of a sizzling New York steak and is priced to open for a combo pizza.
Blend: 77% Cabernet Sauvignon, 13% Petit Verdot, 8% Malbec, 2% Petite Sirah
Professional Ratings
-
Wilfred Wong of Wine.com
COMMENTARY: The Matchbook Red Gravel Cabernet Sauvignon offers excellent elevation and textures on the palate. TASTING NOTES: This wine displays aromas and flavors of black fruit, dried leaves, and oak. Serve it with grilled beef. (Tasted: October 9, 2021, San Francisco, CA)
A noble variety bestowed with both power and concentration, Cabernet Sauvignon enjoys success all over the globe, its best examples showing potential to age beautifully for decades. Cabernet Sauvignon flourishes in Bordeaux's Medoc where it is often blended with Merlot and smaller amounts of some combination of Cabernet Franc, Malbecand Petit Verdot. In the Napa Valley, ‘Cab’ is responsible for some of the world’s most prestigious, age-worthy and sought-after “cult” wines. Somm Secret—DNA profiling in 1997 revealed that Cabernet Sauvignon was born from a spontaneous crossing of Cabernet Franc and Sauvignon Blanc in 17th century southwest France.
Mitigated by mild Sacramento River Delta breezes, the Dunnigan Hills appellation is in the northwest portion of Yolo County and has a Mediterranean climate.