Winemaker Notes
Professional Ratings
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
(The) only perfect wine of the vintage, which Thomas Brown calls the “Schrader Schrader,” is the 2004 Cabernet Sauvignon Schrader Beckstoffer To-Kalon Vineyard, a 100% Cabernet Sauvignon from clones 4, 6 and 337. This was aged in 90% Darnajou and 10% Taransaud barrels. It had the second highest alcohol in the vintage at 14.6%. In possession of everything anyone could want in a wine, this profound effort offers up a bouquet of lavender, cedarwood, creme de cassis, blackberry, subtle smoke and incense. It is broad, full-bodied and opulent with ethereal complexity, remarkable concentration and that indescribable gravitas and nobility that world-class prodigious wines possess. It is the most youthful of this quartet and probably won’t be at its best for another 3-4 years, but it should drink well for at least two decades thereafter.
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Wine Spectator
This remains a stunningly complex and beautifully crafted wine, capturing optimal ripeness and exhibiting layers of blackberry, raspberry, plum and boysenberry. Juicy, fleshy and structured, with appealing fresh earth scents. Drink now through 2030.
One of the most prestigious wines of the world capable of great power and grace, Napa Valley Cabernet is a leading force in the world of fine, famous, collectible red wine. Today the Napa Valley and Cabernet Sauvignon are so intrinsically linked that it is difficult to discuss one without the other. But it wasn’t until the 1970s that this marriage came to light; sudden international recognition rained upon Napa with the victory of the Stag’s Leap Wine Cellars 1973 Cabernet Sauvignon in the 1976 Judgement of Paris.
Cabernet Sauvignon undoubtedly dominates Napa Valley today, covering half of the land under vine, commanding the highest prices per ton and earning the most critical acclaim. Cabernet Sauvignon’s structure, acidity, capacity to thrive in multiple environs and ability to express nuances of vintage make it perfect for Napa Valley where incredible soil and geographical diversity are found and the climate is perfect for grape growing. Within the Napa Valley lie many smaller sub-AVAs that express specific characteristics based on situation, slope and soil—as a perfect example, Rutherford’s famous dust or Stags Leap District's tart cherry flavors.