Winemaker Notes
Professional Ratings
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Wine Enthusiast
Soft, rich and ripe, this is one of those Cabernets that feels dramatic in the mouth. Partly it's the fruit; complex in cherries, blackberries, mocha and rum and cola. Partly it's the oak and partly it's the fabulous balance of rich, sweet tannins and acidity. Put it all together, and it's irresistible.
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Wine & Spirits
Though percentages from the two counties imply a blend, this is, in fact, a wine from one contiguous estate, straddling the border of Napa and Sonoma at the top of Spring Mountain. Most of the Cabernet is planted at the higher elevations of Pride's property, where the soils are particularly thin: gravel patchworks of volcanic rock, sandstone, clay and loam. They grow a structured Cabernet with distinctively pure black currant flavor, this '04 potent with the mineral tannin of those mountain soils. Check on it ten years from the vintage; it should continue to develop beyond that.
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.
Reaching up California's coastline and into its valleys north of San Francisco, the North Coast AVA includes six counties: Marin, Solano, Napa, Sonoma, Mendocino and Lake. While Napa and Sonoma enjoy most of the glory, the rest produce no shortage of quality wines in an intriguing and diverse range of styles.
Climbing up the state's rugged coastline, the chilly Marin County, just above the City and most of Sonoma County, as well as Mendocino County on the far north end of the North Coast successfully grow cool-climate varieties like Pinot Noir, Chardonnay and in some spots, Riesling. Inland Lake County, on the other hand, is considerably warmer, and Cabernet Sauvignon, Zinfandel and Sauvignon Blanc produce some impressive wines with affordable price tags.