Winemaker Notes
Blend: 77% Cabernet Sauvignon & 23% Cabernet Franc
Professional Ratings
-
James Suckling
The complex aromas are amazing with hot stones, blackcurrants, meat, and iron. Turns to porcini and wet earth. Cassis leaf, too. Full-bodied, velvety, and savory with blueberries, iron, iodine and oyster shell. Classic texture. So fabulous to taste now but will age beautifully for decades to come.
-
Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
The 2013 Cabernet Sauvignon Au Paradis comes from one of their newer acquisitions, formerly known as the Showket Vineyard in the red soil hillsides overlooking the Oakville crossroads. This is a blend of 76% Cabernet Sauvignon and 24% Cabernet Franc. Production is less than 1,530 cases. The 2013 displays loads of roasted meats, licorice, graphite, dusty, loamy soil notes, creamy blackcurrants and blackberries, stunning richness, and a Pauilllac-like first-growth cedarwood and crème de cassis notes. The Cabernet Franc from this area grows right next to the famous Maya wine of Dalle Valle. This wine spent all of its time in 100% new Daranjou cooperage, which is not even noticeable in the aromatics or flavors. This full-bodied, modern-day classic should age brilliantly for 30-35 years.
-
Wine Spectator
Deftly balanced and proportioned, this is rich without being weighty, centered on dusty blackberry, crushed rock and gravelly, loamy earth notes. Gains depth and nuance on the finish, suggesting this has yet to show its full potential. Drink now through 2032.
One of the world’s most classic and popular styles of red wine, Bordeaux-inspired blends have spread from their homeland in France to nearly every corner of the New World. Typically based on either Cabernet Sauvignon or Merlot and supported by Cabernet Franc, Malbec and Petit Verdot, the best of these are densely hued, fragrant, full of fruit and boast a structure that begs for cellar time. Somm Secret—Blends from Bordeaux are generally earthier compared to those from the New World, which tend to be fruit-dominant.
Home to a diverse array of smaller AVAs with varied microclimates and soil types, Sonoma County has something for every wine lover. Physically twice as large as Napa Valley, the region only produces about half the amount of wine but boasts both tremendous quality and variety. With its laid-back atmosphere and down-to-earth attitude, the wineries of Sonoma are appreciated by wine tourists for their friendliness and approachability. The entire county intends to become a 100% sustainable winegrowing region by 2019.
Sonoma County wines are produced with carefully selected grape varieties to reflect the best attributes of their sites—Dry Creek Valley’s consistent sunshine is ideal for Zinfandel, while the warm Alexander Valley is responsible for rich, voluptuous red wines like Cabernet Sauvignon. Chardonnay and Pinot Noir are important throughout the county, most notably in the cooler AVAs of Russian River, Sonoma Coast and Carneros. Sauvignon Blanc, Merlot and Syrah have also found a firm footing here.