Winemaker Notes
Professional Ratings
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
A spectacular wine, the 2014 Cabernet Sauvignon Mercury Head is 100% Cabernet Sauvignon sourced from the Taplin and Morisoli vineyards and several Atlas Peak vineyards, aged 18 months in 50% new French oak. There are 5,461 cases of this wine. The wine is a classic, broad-shouldered, compelling Cabernet Sauvignon with beautiful blueberry and crème de cassis fruit, Christmas fruitcake, cedar wood, white chocolate notes and a hint of graphite and background toast. It is ripe, full-bodied, pure, multidimensional and a mouthful of succulent Cabernet Sauvignon to drink over the next 20+ years.
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.