Actually, it was somewhere in the order of 76 Cabs, give or take. After a while, Your West Coast Oenophile kinda lost count, but then, these are the hazards of duty I encounter when attending single-varietal showcases for Sostevinobile. Still, given the choice of spending my day in front of a monitor or sipping from the best at the California Cabernet Society, it was really no contest.
As was last year’s event, the 20th Annual Spring Barrel Tasting was held at San Francisco’s Bently Reserve. Once again, the overall quality of the wine made making critical distinctions somewhat of a challenge; indeed, if there was an indisputable champion among the presentation tables, it may well have been the extraordinary Wagyu from Morgan Ranch, braised to near perfection. Lipitor be damned! This station commanded more repeat visits than anyone else this afternoon!
But, of course, the purpose of this event was not to assuage the carnivore in me but to showcase the wine that put California on the viticultural map. The first table I came upon, Grassi Wines, set the tone for the afternoon with a released 2006 Cabernet Sauvignon and a barrel sample of their upcoming 2009 vintage. The tantalizing Cassandra Grassi managed, however, to tantalize me with the allure of Grassi’s soon-to-be-released 2009 Ribolla Gialla, which I plan to sample on my next Napa swing. Another Napa denizen, Baldacci Vineyards poured a selection of the several Cabernets they produce, both the 2006 IV Sons Cabernet Sauvignon Stags Leap District and their much-honored 2006 Black Label Cabernet Sauvignon Stags Leap District. And it was great to have another chance to sample the 2006 Concept from Cain, the purest Cabernet Sauvignon among their family of Bordelaise blends.
Maybe the truest differential of the afternoon came from the names, particularly for the Meritages or for those Cabernets the winemakers chose to give proprietary labels. A stellar example heralded from Santa Ynez’ Star Lane Vineyard, the 2005 Astral, their premium Cabernet. From Calistoga, Carter Cellars caused quite a stir, not merely for the surprisingly excellent quality of their wines (though listing a pedigree that includes Nils Venge, Jeff Fontanella and Beckstoffer To Kalon ought to have been a harbinger), but also for their 2007 Coliseum Block, a luxuriant Cabernet Sauvignon, and the 2008 Envy Cabernet Sauvignon. Terlato Family’s Chimney Rock paired its 2006 Tomahawk with a barrel sample of their 2009 Ganymede Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon, both of Stags Leap. Cliff Lede’sStags Leap entrant, the aptly named 2006 Poetry, a Cab softened with 2% each of Merlot and Petit Verdot. Sonoma’s Simi blended Cabernet Franc, Merlot, Petit Verdot and Malbec with the predominant Cabernet Sauvignon to make its single vineyard 2006 Landslide, while its 2006 Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon Alexander Valley boasted a more streamlined blend.
Some wineries can’t help but make great Cabernet, the only nuance coming from the vintage. To no surprise, I savored my sip of the 2006 Cabernet Sauvignon Volcanic Hill from Diamond Creek as I exchanged pleasantries with Boots Brounstein. Similarly, my chat with Richard Arrowood allowed me to indulge both in the 2006 Cabernet Sauvignon from his Amapola Creek, as well as his newly-released 2006 Cabernet Sauvignon Sonoma Valley from his eponymous Arrowood Vineyards. Peju Provence was superb, as one might have expected, with their 2006 Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley, a blend that features both 7% Merlot and 7% Petit Verdot, while the delightfully eccentric polyglot, Jan Shrem, regaled me in Italian as he poured his Clos Pégase 2006 Cabernet Hommage Artist Series Reserve.
Readers know that I scrupulously try to avoid sweeping generalizations in these entries, and certainly the selections we will make for Sostevinobile’s wine program will be assessed on the quality of each wine, not any established bias. Still, if I found any consensus on this particular afternoon, it was that those wineries that featured their 2007 vintage seemed to offer a more compelling display of their viticultural prowess than I perceived overall in the wines from 2006. Case in point—the newly released 2007 Entre Nous from Ashe Family Vineyards, a strikingly rich bottling of 100% Cabernet Sauvignon limited to a mere four barrels. The estate bottling of the 2007 Cabernet Sauvignon Spring Mountain District from Barnett Vineyards, balanced with small aliquots of Petit Verdot and Cabernet Franc, similarly distinguished itself. Temecula’s Briar Rose contrasted several vintages of its Cab, with the 2007 Cabernet Sauvignon Linkogle Estate Collection clearly showing its potential for longevity.
Few California wineries grow Carménère, let alone blend it with its fellow Bordeaux varietals, but Alexander Valley’s Chalk Hill has embraced it for years. I failed to notate the percentages blend in their 2007 Estate Bottled Cabernet Sauvignon but, again, found it preferable to the 2006 vintage, a blend that eked in at 76% Cabernet, along with its other components. The 2007 Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon from the Buoncristiani brothers displayed an amazing texture, while Lorena and Rolando Herrera from Mi Sueño crafted an elegant 2007 Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon of their own. Just north of St. Helena, tiny Tudal Winery, a single varietal operation, showcased a pair of its wines, the 2007 Cabernet Sauvignon Reserve and the 2007 Estate Cabernet Sauvignon—with a total of 600 cases a year, both flourished under Tudal’s handcrafted methodology.
As is my wont at these tastings, I strive first to connect with those wineries I have yet to incorporate into Sostevinobile’s database. Alexander Valley’s Blue Rock Vineyards introduced themselves with their flagship 2006 Estate Cabernet Sauvignon. Laurie Claudon of Clark-Claudon Vineyards offer her sustainably produced 2006 Estate Cabernet Sauvignon, a noteworthy 1,000-case effort. A member of the Silenus cooperative, Mario Bazán Cellars produces the classic Bordeaux pairing of Sauvignon Blanc and their unblended 2006 Cabernet Sauvignon. I, of course, am well-familiar with Agustin Huneeus’ Quintessa, but had not previously encountered his Faust wines, a separate venture dedicated solely to Cabernet Sauvignon; winemaker Charles Thomas generously rounded out the striking 2006 Faust with 19% Merlot, plus 3% Malbec and 1% Cabernet Franc. Contrast this blend with the 2006 Cabernet Sauvignon from Calistoga’s Jericho Canyon, a straightforward Cab with a mere 3% Merlot added.
Naming a winery The Grade seemed quirky, if not ambiguous, until owner Tom Thornton cited the allusion from Robert Louis Stevenson’s The Silverado Squatters; tasting their 2006 The Grade Cabernet Sauvignon left no confusion about their craft, while a surreptitious sip of their 2009 Sea-Fog Sauvignon Blanc was a nice counterpoint to the plethora of red wine I continued to evaluate. Also in the category of hard-to-fathom names, the Most Wanted Wine Company turned out to be a Wild West-themed venture from Oakdale, a town I have since discovered lies somewhere en route from Manteca to Jamestown; fortunately, their 2007 Cabernet Sauvignon proved far less grating than their music-laden Web site. Perhaps the last word in Cabernet, ZD Wines, derives its name from the acronym for aerospace quality control—Zero Defects—an attribute that could just as easily applied to their organically-grown 2006 Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley.
I had passed by Volker Eisele Family Estate during my recent, inadvertent tour of Chiles Valley but hadn’t had the time to stop in. Their compelling 2006 Cabernet Sauvignon is also farmed organically, but I wish they had also brought their unique 2006 Terzetto, a blend of equal parts Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, and Merlot, co-fermented. Actually, I was surprised that no one (at least, among the wineries I sampled) had poured a Cabernet Franc at this tasting—after all, it does fall within Cab Society parameters. Nor did I stumble upon any Bordeaux/Rhône blends, as I often find in Lodi and in Paso Robles. Varozza Vineyards, however did pour both their estate grown 2005 St. Helena Cabernet Sauvignon and their 2005 St. Helena Petite Sirah, a welcome diversion from the monolithic pourings of the event.
Inarguably, Cabernet is the cornerstone of Napa Valley, so is Cornerstone Cellars the cornerstone of cornerstones? Rather than ponder such a conundrum, I sipped their immodest 2006 Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon with unabashed delight. I equally enjoyed the 2005 Cabernet Sauvignon Hendry Vineyard from Hendry Ranch, and look forward to sampling their Albariño and Primitivo at a future date. The steep terrain of Hidden Ridge helps shape the terroir of its Cabernet-exclusive production, making its 2006 Cabernet Sauvignon 55% Slope a most distinctive wine.
A trio of wineries from Napa comported themselves quite ably as I again established my first contact with their ventures. Silverado Vineyards, with limited production of Sangiovese and other Italian varietals, held forth with their 2006 Estate Cabernet Sauvignon. Nearby, in Rutherford, Sullivan Vineyards similarly showcased their 2006 Estate Cabernet Sauvignon. And Titus from St. Helena impressed me with their 2006 Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon
In my efforts to embrace as many wineries as I can for Sostevinobile, I sometimes overlook long-established labels, thinking I already know their craft quite well. This afternoon’s lesson in not taking wineries for grant first came from Spring Mountain’s Keenan Winery. I found their 2006 Cabernet Sauvignon Reserve Napa Valley, Spring Mountain District quite compelling and their special Tribute, the 2006 Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley, 30th Anniversary even more so. Similarly, Merryvale struck me with a trio of their Cabernets, first the affordably-priced 2007 Starmont Cabernet, then their signature 2006 Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley, and finally with their extraordinary 2006 Profile, a limited-release Cabernet Sauvignon blended with 2% Merlot, 5% Petit Verdot, and 1% Cabernet Franc.
Admittedly, I found myself Cabbed out at this point, vowing not to sip another of these wines at least until Tuesday. And certainly I knew I would return, same address, same staging in a few months to come, to work my way through the bounty of Howell Mountain’s Cabernets and, of course, another infusion of Wagyu beef!