Winemaker Notes
Blend: 79% Cabernet Sauvignon, 21% Cabernet Franc
Professional Ratings
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Jeb Dunnuck
The 2015 BDX is a blend of 70% Cabernet Sauvignon and 30% Cabernet Franc that spent two years in 75% new French oak. It’s a powerful, concentrated, and voluptuous effort that’s going to need bottle age to show its true potential. Giving up lots of graphite, charcoal embers, and licorice, with beautiful cassis and jammy blackberry fruit, hide bottles for 4-5 years and it will keep for 15-20 years. It’s a great value.
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James Suckling
Blueberries and blackberries and hints of lavender and violets. Full body and firm, chewy tannins. Yet, it’s drinkable. Fresh and tight. Cabernet Sauvignon and Cabernet Franc, selected from To Kolan. Better in 2022.
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Wine Spectator
Solid and direct, with a cocoa-framed core of black currant and fig fruit, scored liberally with tobacco and loam notes on the finish. Cabernet Sauvignon and Cabernet Franc. Best from 2021 through 2026.
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 some of the most sought-after Cabernet Sauvignon in America, Napa Valley’s Oakville district stretches across the center of Napa's valley floor and foothills between the Vaca and Mayacamas Mountains. This AVA is home to the legendary To Kalon Vineyard and Martha's Vineyard, as well as many powerhouse wineries including Screaming Eagle, Silver Oak, Robert Mondavi, Opus One, Far Niente and Groth.
The climate is generally warm and agreeable, resulting in year after year of favorable vintages. Summer days see a gentle tug of war between warmer inland air and the cool air coming in from the San Pablo Bay, creating an ideal environment to grow red varieties. Oakville's diverse soils, namely ancient sea bedrock, clay and gravel, are well-drained, and perfect for high-caliber viticulture.
Cabernet here is often bottled varietally but is also popular in Bordeaux Blends. Oakville wines are known for their silky, sensual textures, structured tannins, dark and brooding fruit and lovely aromatics. These age-worthy and prestigious wines are favored by collectors throughout the world.