| Country: | United States |
| Regions: | California California (Napa) |
| Winery: | Dunn |
| Grape Type: | Cabernet Sauvignon |
| Organic: | Yes |
| Vintage: | 2019 |
| Bottle Size: | 750 ml |
Hoopes Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley is made from 100 percent Cabernet Sauvignon.
“Made with the same care and thoughtfulness of our single vineyard series, the Hoopes Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon is a blend of fruit from a rich variety of sites. The synthesis of these vineyards, which represent the complex tapestry of Napa terroir, results in sublime balance, intense aromas and luscious textures that bring the diverse valley into harmony in a glass. Born out of curiosity, this Cabernet Sauvignon has matured into a stunning wine, which over delivers in intensity and richness. We are proud of this beautiful example of what the Napa Valley can do.”
This wine has a very pretty fruit-forward nose filled with plummy sweet tarts, cherry compote, cocoa nibs, hard candy, cedar box, and allspice. The entry is fresh and clean with a core of delicious generous fruit. It has a lovely elegant texture, weighty middle and resolves into a mocha filled finish.
Review:
-Jeb Dunnuck 93 Points
Cardinale Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon is made from 91% Cabernet Sauvignon, 9% Merlot.
Super structured and with minerality to spare, this Cabernet Sauvignon offers a real presence on the palate from start to finish. Generous notes of dark chocolate balance beautifully with a blue and black fruit flavor explosion, finishing with a subtle whisper of rose petal.
Reviews:
- James Suckling 98 Points
"The 2019 Cabernet Sauvignon is a blend of 91% Cabernet Sauvignon and 9% Merlot from Ed Corra vineyard, Stags Leap, St Helena - from all over the valley! Deep garnet-purple in color, it sashays out with gorgeous blackcurrant preserves, wild blueberries, and Morello cherries scents, plus hints of roses, fragrant earth, allspice, and violets with dark chocolate. Full-bodied, rich, and seductive with achingly velvety tannins and a laser-precise backbone of acidity, this beautiful wine finishes with epic length and seductive fragrance. 5,100 cases were made."
-The Wine Independent 99 Points
A dramatic, ridgetop landscape — rising 1500 feet above Lake Hennessey, staring west over Pritchard Hill — persistently influenced by a push/pull draw between The Valley’s floor and Lake Berryessa. This wild, untamed, eastern frontier of Napa Valley, produces singular, terroir-driven wines of captivating beauty, power and lift. An unseasonably wet and cool springtime produced significant shatter at Sage Ridge in 2019, reducing our yields by 50%, leading to a particularly flamboyant edition of this wine.
An incomparable expression of Cabernet Sauvignon — massively pure red fruit character, delivered on a ribbon of ultra-suave tannins and gorgeously seductive high tones. The palate never relents its come-hither posture. Aromatically, puts forth an intriguing botanical complexity that is unmistakably site-specific. As our experience with this one-of-a-kind terroir deepens, we remain endlessly excited for the potential of these unique ridgetop vineyards. Get your hands on a bottle and pull the cork…a wine built for immense near-term gratification.
Review:
-Jeb Dunnuck 95 Points
-Lisa Perrotti-Brown (Robert Parker) 95 Points
The Grade Cabernet Sauvignon Serpent's Back Napa Valley is made from 100 percent Cabernet Sauvignon.
Review:
The 2019 Cabernet Sauvignon Serpent's Back shows a more aromatic, high-toned side of this site. Bright red/purplish berry fruit, pomegranate, cinnamon and sweet floral accents are all laced together. The Serpent's Back is the most refined of these three Cabernets, but it has plenty of Calistoga punch.
-- Antonio Galloni 95 Points
The Grade Cabernet Sauvignon Serpent's Back Napa Valley is made from 100 percent Cabernet Sauvignon.
Review:
The 2019 Cabernet Sauvignon Serpent's Back shows a more aromatic, high-toned side of this site. Bright red/purplish berry fruit, pomegranate, cinnamon and sweet floral accents are all laced together. The Serpent's Back is the most refined of these three Cabernets, but it has plenty of Calistoga punch.
-- Antonio Galloni 95 Points
Alejandro Bulgheroni Lithology Cabernet Sauvignon is made from 100 percent Cabernet Sauvignon.
We only produced a scant 50 cases of this wine this year, far too small an amount considering how great it turned out. There’s that typical saturated to the rim deep purple color, with intense cassis, herb, and milk chocolate, bricks and forest floor, black plum pudding aromas. In the mouth, there’s a great balance, with notable oak and vanilla notes intertwined with dense black fruits. It’s an opulent and plush style, yet finishes with sweet grippy tannins.
Review:
-Jeb Dunnuck 100 Points
Dunn Vineyards Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon is made from 100 percent Cabernet.
This Napa Valley wine is a blend of their Howell Mountain fruit and a small quantity of valley floor fruit that they purchase. This valley floor fruit contributes to the wine’s earlier approachability and softer tannic structure.
Review:
I loved the 2019 Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley, which I think is a step up over the 2018, although both 2019s show a much more elegant profile. Ripe currants, plums, roasted herbs, violets, and incense notes all shine in this medium to full-bodied, ripe, supple, layered beauty, which has fine tannins and a gorgeous finish. Enjoy bottles any time over the coming 15 years.
-Jeb Dunnuck 94 Points
Since 1979, Randy and Lori Dunn have owned and operated Dunn Vineyards and continue to produce one of the most highly acclaimed Cabernet Sauvignons from Howell Mountain and the Napa Valley.
In 1978 Randy and Lori purchased a 14-acre parcel in Angwin with about 5 acres of Cabernet vines on it. At the time, Randy was working full-time as a winemaker in Rutherford. In the evenings and on weekends, Randy, Lori, and a young Mike tended the vines. The same year, Randy agreed to farm and buy the fruit from Harry Frank's adjoining property. That first harvest yielded 9 tons of fruit from these two vineyards. Randy purchased an additional 3 tons from the Beatty Ranch and Dunn Vineyards was underway. Everything picked up speed after that. Randy, Lori, Mike and baby Jennifer moved onto the property that today is the winery. In 1981, the winery was officially bonded. By 1984 the ATF approved Howell Mountain as a sub-AVA of the Napa Valley. Kristina was born and Lori was now running after 2 young daughters and a teenage son. Randy was still working down in the valley so the family business was still relegated to evenings and weekends. But things were going well. By 1985 they moved into the new family house (the "Brown House") and Randy left his job in the valley. By the end of the '80's Dunn Vineyards had become a successful operation. Randy was consulting for other wineries and selling out all of his wine. In 1989 he had run out of room to store barrels and he tunneled into the mountain to make more space. Now they had room for more barrels and a place for Jenny and Kristina to rollerskate. In 1999, Mike came back to help out part-time. It took about three years, but the "cellar grunt" came on full-time. Kristina graduated from Cal Poly with a degree in winemaking and viticulture and came onboard. By 2005, both kids were working full-time for Randy. Dunn Vineyards had always been a family business, but this was a whole new level. Kristina's girls are a little young yet, but they tour the vineyards eating wild blackberries, testing grape ripeness and visiting uncle Mike. Mike's son Alex has been helping out with bottling for the past several years and 2017 was his first full harvest. So far it looks good for the Dunn clan to continue farming this land. There are some distinct benefits to being above 1400 feet in elevation. We tend to see more sunshine each day and the heat tends to be more moderate. But spring starts later for us and, like winter, tends to be cooler here than on the valley floor. Frost is a concern from bud break through flowering. In 2008, four days of 19-degree temperatures devastated half our crop. Our yields average about 2 tons an acre (which is really low) but the cool, wet vintages do not have the same negative effects that come with being on the valley floor. We farm about 42 acres of Cabernet Sauvignon on the property. This is a manageable size for us to remain in the driver's seat for all farming and winemaking operations.
Young and present, this is an energetic and bold expression of violets, lavender, and cassis mixed with dark chocolate, cherry, plum, and graphite. A wine happy to be tucked away in the cellar, and it’s also expressing itself beautifully now.
Review:
-Joe Czerwinski 100 Points
-Decanter 99 Points
-Wine Advocate 98 Points
-The Wine Independent 98 Points
Domaine du Colombier Hermitage Rouge is made from 100 percent Syrah.
Perfect with beef ribs, grilled meats and cheese.
Manually harvested with destemmed grapes and fermented for about 2 to 3 weeks in temperature controlled vats, with an ageing period of 12 months, 65% in oak barrels and 35% in concrete tanks.
Review:
-Joe Czerwinski (Robert Parker) 96 Points
-Jeb Dunnuck 96 Points
-Wine Enthusiast 95 Points
-Josh Raynolds 94 Points
Bernard Cote Rotie Coteaux de Bassenon 2024 is made from 94% Syrah and 6% Viognier.
The harvest is destemmed, cooled and placed in thermo-regulated stainless steel vats, where it stays 3 to 4 weeks with daily pump-overs and punch-downs through alcoholic fermentation. It is then aged 18 months in French oak barrels (20% new).
The fruit comes from a tiny parcel in the commune of Tupin-et-Semons, at the extreme southern end of the Cote Rotie appellation. Made from old-vine Syrah with a touch of Viognier, this cuvee shows a deep red color with purple hues and a fragrant nose of candied red fruit and roasted notes - a wine of great finesse with a delicate, long, silky finish.
Pair with beef stew, marinated red meats and sweetbreads.