Winemaker Notes
Professional Ratings
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
The 2014 Oakville Cabernet Sauvignon has a deep garnet-purple color and nose of wild blueberries, cassis and warm plums with touches of cedar, tobacco and wild thyme. Medium to full-bodied, the palate in nicely balanced and open for business, with plenty of mouth-filling black fruits supported by velvety tannins and a good long finish. Though drinking now, it still has a solid 10-12 years ahead of it. Classic Napa Cab!
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Wine Enthusiast
This hails from a 1,000–1,400-foot elevation site above the valley floor called Oakville Ranch that contributes beautiful power in its firm, integrated tannin and oak. Balanced, the wine exudes lovely notes of boysenberry tart, blackberry and cedar, with a dusting of clove.
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Wine & Spirits
Sourced mostly from the Oakville Ranch, a vineyard Phil Coturri replanted in 2006 and farms organically, this ferments in open-top vats without added yeasts. Aging in French oak (75 percent new) points up the sweetness and plushness of the wine, a bold, succulent cabernet with finesse. There’s not a lot of detail to the flavor, but it’s a pleasure to drink with roast squab or other game birds.
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.
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.