Winemaker Notes
Focused and complex, the wine opens with aromas and flavors of black fruit—blackberry, currant, and plum—that slowly give way to layers of nutmeg, rosemary, grilled game, and warm pie crust. This firmly structured and full-bodied wine gains depth and richness through the finish.
Enjoy this wine with filet mignon with green peppercorn cream sauce or braised veal shanks with green olives and capers.
Professional Ratings
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Wine Enthusiast
Made almost exclusively from Cabernet Sauvignon, this is a deeply colored, ripely rich young wine that shows masses of blackberries. There are supporting notes of pain grillé, anise, violets, anise and smoky oak, with a firm grounding of minerals.
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.