Sullivan Rutherford Estate Coeur de Vigne Cabernet Sauvignon 2019
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Enthusiast
Wine -
Suckling
James
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The 2019 Coeur de Vigne represents a vibrant rendition of a classic Rutherford Cabernet Sauvignon. Made up of Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot, the nose offers rich aromas of blackberry and blueberry that meld with hints of graphite, lavender and thyme. This wine is full-bodied on the palate with mouthcoating tannins, while also maintaining bright acidity. Flavors of tart fruit and cocoa dusted coffee beans flirt with baking spices. The long finish highlights undertones of toasted new oak, suggesting the wine will develop beautifully over time.
Blend: 88% Cabernet Sauvignon, 8% Petit Verdot, 2% Merlot, 2% Cabernet Franc
Professional Ratings
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Wine Enthusiast
Blended with 8% Petit Verdot and 2% each of Merlot and Cabernet Franc, this hearty red is brimming in thick tannin, considerable oak and expansively youthful layers of vanilla, cassis and plum. Impressive in its grasp of both variety and appellation, it is worth cellaring; enjoy best from 2029 through 2034. Cellar Selection
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James Suckling
Aromas of mocha chocolate, blackberries and dark spices, followed by a chewy, full-bodied palate with juicy yet tart berries on the center-palate. Tight, rich and extracted.
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2018-
Enthusiast
Wine -
Spectator
Wine -
Suckling
James
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Suckling
James -
Parker
Robert
The Estate was founded in 1972 by James ("Jim") O’Neil Sullivan, a visionary and pioneer of Rutherford, a premier Napa Valley appellation for Cabernet Sauvignon. Jim's passion for creating great wine predated the 1976 Judgement of Paris which famously recognized Napa Valley wines as among the best in the world.
Today, the Estate continues to build on its legacy of growing and crafting world class Cabernet Sauvignon. Under new ownership in 2018, the team is deeply investing in its vineyard programs and plans are underway to build a state of the art winery beginning in late 2020.
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.
The Rutherford sub-region of Napa Valley centers on the town of Rutherford and covers some of Napa Valley’s finest vineyard real estate, spanning from the Mayacamas in the west, to the Vaca Mountains on the other side of the valley.
Inside of the Rutherford AVA, bordering the Mayacamas, is a stretch of uplands called the Rutherford Bench. (These bench lands technically run the length of Oakville as well). Mountain runoff creates deep, well-drained, alluvial soils on the bench, giving vine roots plenty of reason to permeate deep into the ground. The result is wine with great structure and complexity.
Rutherford Cabernet Sauvingons and Bordeaux Blends garner substantial attention for their enticing fragrances of dusty earth and dried herbs, broad and juicy mid-palates and lush and fine-grained tannins. The sub-appellation claims some of the valley’s most prized vineyards today, namely Caymus, Rubicon and Beckstoffer Georges III.
It is also home to Napa’s most influential and historic personalities. Thomas Rutherford, responsible for the appellation's name, made serious investments here in grape growing and wine production between the years of 1850 to 1880. Gustave Niebaum purchased a large swath of land and completed his winery in 1887, calling it “Inglenook.” Today this remains the oldest bonded winery in California. Georges Latour founded Beaulieu Vineyard in 1900, making it the oldest continuous winery in the state. Latour also hired the famous enologist, André Tchelistcheff, a man credited for single-handedly defining the modern Napa winemaking style.