Winemaker Notes
Professional Ratings
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Decanter
Wonderfully refined, sumptuous and complex. Notes of dense ripe red fruits, generous blackcurrants and warm spice with cedar wood, tobacco, dark plum and chocolate. Powerful and rich yet with real elegance and finesse.
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Wilfred Wong of Wine.com
COMMENTARY: After I tasted the 2014 Rodney Strong Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon, I thought that the apex had been reached, but the 2015 vintage is an even better wine. TASTING NOTES: This wine surpasses many Cabernets in the $75+ range. Its aromas and flavors of black fruit, complimentary oak are beautiful, powerful and refined. Pair it with a black pepper-crusted T-Bone steak. (Tasted: November 14, 2018, San Francisco, CA)
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Wine Enthusiast
Smoky oak and firm, grippy tannins rise to the front of the palate in this reserve-tier wine. It is 100% varietal and sourced from multiple vineyards. Thick black fruit is complemented by cedar and dried herb atop a velvety smooth texture.
Founded by wine industry pioneer, Rod Strong, in 1959, Rodney Strong Vineyards is now owned by the Kleins, a farming-based family that prides itself on land stewardship and a relentless push for superior wine quality from Sonoma County. After purchasing the company in 1989, Tom Klein began the endeavor that today brings together excellent vineyards, the industry's finest winemaking equipment, and exceptional talent. The winery farms and sources grapes from vineyards throughout Sonoma County, focusing on Alexander Valley, Russian River Valley and Chalk Hill. Rodney Strong Vineyards is best known for its estate-bottled and vineyard-designated wines, and is also recognized for their sustainable and Fish Friendly Farming, dedication to solar energy production and becoming carbon neutral in 2009.
While Sonoma County is acclaimed—and rightfully so—for its Chardonnays, Pinot Noirs, and Zinfandels, it also produces exceptional Cabernet Sauvignon. Of the region’s 18 American Viticultural Areas, only a handful produce top-notch Cabernet Sauvignon. These appellations include Alexander Valley, Knights Valley, Sonoma Valley and Dry Creek Valley. Sonoma Cabernet Sauvignons made in these appellations can offer a complex array of aromas and flavors. Fruit notes such as blackberry, blackcurrant, cassis, black cherry and raspberry often are accompanied by hints of graphite, dusty earth, cigar box, toast and vanilla. The varietal has a rich history in Sonoma, and some of these Cabernet Sauvignons and Cabernet-based blends rival the best from Napa Valley.