Winemaker Notes
Bold and precise, the wine exemplifies the Coombsville AVA by expressing the volcanic soils that run
throughout the estate vineyard. A vivid purple rim surrounds an opaque core while penetrating aromas
emerge from initial cassis and powdered chocolate, expanding to graphite and Herbs de Provence. An
immediate burst of dark cherry and ripe blackberry intermingle with savory herbs and slate-like minerality against a backdrop of balanced acidity and firm tannins that brings tension to the powerful finish.
Exquisite with roasted rack of lamb with butter beans and spring onions.
Professional Ratings
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James Suckling
This shows dark plums but then there's also lighter blackcurrant essence, dark chocolate, underbrush, mint, licorice, citrus and burnt-orange undertones in the background. Full-bodied and very intense. Yet, the tannins are compact and grainy. The finish is very long indeed, bringing all the fruit together to a wild climax. Drink in 2022.
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
The 2015 Cabernet Sauvignon Nathan Coombs Estate sports a very deep purple-black color and is scented of bright red and black currants notes with an earthy undercurrent of underbrush, mossy bark and damp soil, plus suggestions of lavender and cloves. Medium to full-bodied, it has a firm, chewy backbone supporting the muscular fruit, with plenty of earth layers coming through on the long, savory finish.
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Connoisseurs' Guide
Luscious and lovely and close to succulent in scent with very deep, black cherry fruit aligned with no small measure of gorgeous oak that contributes complementary notes of crème brûlée, caramel and sweet toast throughout, this ripe and ample, but very well-balanced young Cabernet is so rich and outgoing that it will almost certainly tempt early drinking. Make every effort to resist its present charms, however, as it has more than enough in reserve to grow for years, and, as it ages it will become ever more supple and build on the latent complexities that it is just beginning to show.
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Vinous
The 2015 Cabernet Sauvignon Nathan Coombs Estate is redolent of black cherry, plum, grilled herbs, worn-in leather, chocolate, clove and copious sweet oak from 100% new barrels Paul Hobbs used at the time. Powerful and dark in the glass, the 2015 has plenty of textural intensity, but it is also peaking. I would not push my luck on aging. This was the fourth vintage Paul Hobbs made from his Coombsville estate. Recent vintages show more finesse and a lighter hand with oak.
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.
Situated in the southeastern corner of Napa Valley in the Vaca range, the vineyards of the Coombsville AVA enjoy a long growing season mitigated by cool, San Pablo Bay fog.