TOR Tierra Roja Cabernet Sauvignon 2017
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Product Details
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Somm Note
Winemaker Notes
The most rigorous barrel selection we have ever made from this vineyard. For that reason, given the vintage and the strict barrel cepage, it might be our best Tierra Roja to date. I also think each vintage we know more about the vineyard and the unique wines it makes and we dig deeper and deeper to find its secrets. More dark fruits in this Tierra Roja than ones from the past, and again, it is multilayered. We looked for the dark fruits, more density, and structure, more back fruits than previous vintages, serious, serious wine, as serious a Tierra Roja as we’ve made, more brooding, pure alluring, spicy, dried Mediterranean herb.
Professional Ratings
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James Suckling
Lots of dark berries and terracotta with hints of cumin and walnuts. Full body, round and velvety tannins and a flavorful finish. Really excellent. Drink or hold.
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Jeb Dunnuck
From a tiny four acres site in Oakville (Tor gets all the fruit from this site), the 2017 Cabernet Sauvignon Tierra Roja Vineyard is all Cabernet and was brought up in new barrels. Its deep ruby/purple color is followed by a complex bouquet of black cherries, currants, green tobacco, iron, and tapenade. Complex, gamey, beautifully textured, and medium to full-bodied, it's another remarkably elegant, seamless 2017 from this team.
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Tasting Panel
Deep ruby color; refined, rich, and spicy with lush plum and blackberry; balanced, ripe, and generous, with length and complexity
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Wilfred Wong of Wine.com
COMMENTARY: The 2017 TOR Tierra Roja Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon makes a statement of power and finesse on the palate. TASTING NOTES: This wine is complete and lasting with aromas of bold black fruit and oak accents in its aromas and flavors. Enjoy it with a grilled, well-marbled ribeye, and don’t overcook the steak. (Tasted: February 21, 2020, San Francisco, CA)
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
In 2017, for the first time, the Cabernet Sauvignon from Tierra Roja Vineyard was left on skins after the primary fermentation, "since it just kept getting better and better", according to Tor Kenward. It was aged in 100% new Taransaud barrels. Deep garnet purple in color, the 2017 Cabernet Sauvignon, Tierra Roja Vineyard gives up pronounced cassis, red currant jelly, raspberry leaves and dusty earth scents with nuances of unsmoked cigars, wild thyme and lavender. Medium-bodied, the palate has a super-firm backbone of chewy tannins and great freshness with taut, tightly wound fruit, finishing on a lingering savory note.
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Wine
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.