| Country: | United States |
| Regions: | Washington Washington (Red Mountain) |
| Winery: | Obelisco Estate |
| Grape Type: | Cabernet Sauvignon |
| Vintage: | 2010 |
| Bottle Size: | 750 ml |
Niner Cabernet Sauvignon is made from 91% Cabernet Sauvignon, 3% Cabernet Franc, 3% Petit Verdot, 3% Malbec.
2021 was a benchmark vintage for Cabernet in Paso Robles. The long, cool growing season was ideal for our Bordeaux grapes and allowed them to slowly ripen, creating complex flavors and wines built to age. The 2021 Cabernet Sauvignon was aged 21 months in French Oak barrels and is one that you’ll want for your collection. It is an elegant wine with a balance of dark fruit flavors and herbaceous notes with lush tannins.
Review:
92 points, Editor's Choice - Wine Enthusiast
Round Pond Estate 'Kith & Kin' Cabernet Sauvignon is made with 85% Cabernet Sauvignon, 9% Petit Verdot, 6% Malbec.
Bursting with bright aromatics of cassis and crushed raspberry, they are balanced with an earthy hint of dried sage and clove. The wine offers an energetic play between acid and tannin on the front palate with notes of blackberry and violet with a touch of cocoa on the mid-palate. Fine-grained tannins follow throughout each sip leading to a long, rich, finish.
Review:
Big and rich, this deeply saturated and mouth-filling wine overflows with ripe, plump blueberries, black currants and black cherries accented with mint and dark chocolate. It’s delicious enough to drink young.
-Wine Enthusiast 92 Points
Clos du Val Estate Cabernet Sauvignon is made from 6% Cabernet Sauvignon, 7% Merlot, 5% Malbec and 1% each Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot.
This fresh and vibrant Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon is brimming with aromas of blackberry, mulberry, cassis, and violet. On the palate, bright flavors of cranberry, red plum, cherry, and lavender are intertwined with supple tannins, balanced acidity, and a long, smooth finish.
Review:
"Sleek tannins, guided by sweet earth, slate, purple plum and black olive. Savory notes of fig, toasted cedar, and black tea meld with blackberries. Well structured and impeccably balanced."
-Tasting Panel 96 Points
The estate Cabernet Sauvignon is grown primarily along the southwest ridge of the vineyard. The vines produce small berries with bountiful flavor, concentration and intensity, but also a good degree of finesse, excellent structure and layers of complexity that will continue to develop during extended bottle aging for those who want to cellar and age their wines. The wine is powerful, elegant, full-bodied.
Bottled unfined and unfiltered.100% free run
Pumpovers and punch-downs, up to 45 day macerations
Native yeast, 5 day cold soaks
22 months in 75% new French oak barrels
Fermented in concrete and stainless closed top tanks.
Review:
"The 2017 Cabernet Sauvignon Red Mountain Estate is another powerful wine from this team. Opulent notes of blackcurrants, graphite, chocolate, crushed rocks, wild herbs, and espresso all give way to a full-bodied Cabernet Sauvignon that has loads of fruit, a superstar of a mid-palate, ripe tannins, and a great finish. It’s another 2017 that’s going to benefit from at least 2-4 years of bottle age and have 20 years or more of longevity."
- Jeb Dunnuck (April 2020), 95+ pts
Kinsella Estates Heirloom Cabernet Sauvignon is made from 100% Cabernet Sauvignon
20 months in French Oak (75% New)
Organic made.
Intense was the first word that came to mind. Purely focused tannin weaves its way through the core of this wine. Has a savory characteristic that we have found in past vintages (2014 to be specific) with a slight licorice note on the exceptionally long finish. While this vineyard has been described as “feminine” in the past, that is certainly not the case for this bigger, bolder vintage!
Kinsella Estates Jersey Boys Cabernet Sauvignon is made from 100 percent Cabernet Sauvignon.
Winemaker: Thomas Rivers Brown
Pure 100% cabernet Sauvignon, this vineyard continually astonishes. Loads of loamy soil notes followed by blue and black fruits give this cabernet massive depth and beautiful integrated tannins. Milk chocolate, crème de cassis and tobacco give this massive wine the depth you come to expect with Napa cabs, but it is all Sonoma County, all from our magnificent little private valley which sees sun all day! We buy no fruit; we sell no fruit.
Jersey Boys Vineyard (Kevin Kinsella is the largest individual investor in the hit Broadway show "Jersey Boys")
Jersey Boys is a six-acre vineyard that was replanted in 2008 with four different clones of Cabernet Sauvignon, handpicked by winemaker Thomas Rivers Brown.
Wow…just Wow!! This wine has it all. Not as “big” as past vintages this wine is gangbusters right out of the gate. Ripe blackberry, juicy and rich with a wonderful chocolate core. Has a dusky quality that we have seen in this vineyard in the past that tricks your brain into thinking the wine is older than it is. It’s pure. It’s rich. It’s delicious! Winemaker Thomas Rivers Brown
Any vegetable or meat in the grill. Delicious with Chocolate as well.
AVA: Red Mountain
Winemakers: Sarah Goedhart, Pete Hedges, and Doug Long
Blend: 90% Cabernet, 7.5% Merlot, 2.5% Malbec
Vineyard: 100% Obelisco
Case Production: 450 cases
Barrels: 30% new oak; 63% American, 37% French
Deep purple-red, almost black color. Gorgeous aromatics. Ripe red and dark black cherry fruit aromas complimented by vanilla, pumpkin pie spice, clove, hints of cocoa, butterscotch, sweet basil, curry and maple syrup. On the palate this wine is full-bodied, slightly sweet with notes of ripe raspberry, blackberry, Bing cherry, pie cherry, toast, pumpkin pie spice and a hint of cola. The mouth-feel is soft on the entry, lush in the mid-palate with a hint of tartness and finishes long and smooth.
14.1 % Alcohol
""
- Wine Enthusiast (2013), 92 pts + Cellar Selection
"Slightly deeper, with pipe tobacco and herbs, black fruits, saddle leather, coffee and some charred oak, the 2010 Electrum (90% Cabernet Sauvignon, 8% Merlot and 2% Malbec aged mostly in American oak) has a classical, structured and reserved profile on the palate. Medium to full-bodied, tight and in need of 3-4 years of bottle age, it should age effortlessly for 12-15 years. Drink 2017-2025. - JD"
- Robert Parker's Wine Advocate (Issue #207, June 2013), 91 pts
"Fresh and inviting, this open-textured wine features cherry and dark plum fruit at the core, layered with smoke and pepper as the finish lingers easily and smoothly. Drink now through 2017. 450 cases made. –HS"
- Wine Spectator (October 31st 2013), 91 pts
The Obelisco Estate
It is the Red Mountain reputation for quality that brought Doug Long and his partners together to collaborate on a new winery and estate vineyard. This was the dream location to plant the dream vineyard Doug Long had always wanted to do. Doug not only brings extensive wine making, wine distribution and business experience to this venture, he has history too...
In 1971, Doug and his two brothers planted their first vineyard high above Napa Valley on a property their father had purchased years earlier without any idea that the property was perfect for grapes. Doug and his brothers figured it out quickly and with encouragement from nearby wine makers, they began their adventure. By 1980, their reputation for fine grapes was growing quickly and in 1981, they started their first winery called David Arthur that went on to be named "Winery of the Decade" by Spectator in the year 2000. The 1997 vintage scored 99 points.
Doug attempted to "retire" to Gig Harbor WA. After two years and a realization that his golfing and fishing skills weren't likely to improve, he got the "itch" to do something else. With the encouragement of his beautiful wife Betsy (the beauty is not debated, but the "encouragement" might be), he explored and found Red Mountain in Eastern Washington. By 2004, the vineyard site was purchased and planted. Doug was able to put his long time theory of intensely planted vines into action. It is one of the most intensely planted vineyards in the wine world.
The first vintage was 2007. The partners were not even sure if it would be bottled. The vines were still relatively young. After sampling from the barrels and realizing that there was something special, the first bottling took place. This first offering was named "Best Cabernet in the State over $20" by Seattle Magazine and also received the esteemed "Double Gold" from the Seattle Wine Awards. The Obelisco vineyard theory was now a reality.
In 2011, Doug Long bought out his partners and friends, to assume full ownership of Obelisco and continues to strive for the finest grapes in the world. His philosophy is "that no effort and no expense is too much in growing fine grapes... grapes are 95% of the quality of wine". His philosophy comes through in the wine.
The Obelisco Vineyards
The 30 acre vineyard, designed and planted for the sole purpose of producing intensely complex and rich Red Wines, is located on a southwest facing slope bathed in sunlight throughout long daylight hours. With cool nights and the moderating effect of the Yakima River below, their new Obelisco Estate vineyard is perfectly situated to grow world class grapes noted for their structure, acidity and intense varietal character.
The vineyard is one of the most intensively planted in the State of Washington, with grape production limited to four pounds per plant. This limited production per plant allows for very intense fruit concentrations. The hand picked, estate grown fruit is aged in new French and American oak and crafted into distinctive varietals which are later blended to enhance the flavors of each wine we produce.
Franz Prager, co-founder of the Vinea Wachau, had already earned a reputation for his wines when Toni Bodenstein married into the family. Bodenstein’s passion for biodiversity and old terraces, coupled with brilliant winemaking, places Prager in the highest echelon of Austrian producers.
Smaragd is a designation of ripeness for dry wines used exclusively by members of the Vinea Wachau. The wines must have minimum alcohol of 12.5%. The grapes are hand-harvested, typically in October and November, and are sent directly to press where they spontaneously ferment in stainless-steel tanks.
Klaus sits adjacent to Achleiten and is one of the Wachau’s most famous vineyards for Riesling. The vineyard is incredibly steep with a gradient of 77% at its steepest point. The southeast-facing terraced vineyard of dark migmatite-amphibolite and paragneiss produces a tightly wound and powerful wine. The parcel belonging to Toni Bodenstein was planted in 1952.
Tasting Notes:
Austrian Riesling is often defined by elevated levels of dry extract thanks to a lengthy ripening period and freshness due to dramatic temperature swings between day and night. “Klaus is not a charming Riesling,” says Toni Bodenstein with a wink. Klaus is Prager’s most assertive and robust Riesling.
Food Pairing
Riesling’s high acidity makes it one of the most versatile wines at the table. Riesling can be used to cut the fattiness of foods such as pork or sausages and can tame some saltiness. Conversely, it can highlight foods such as fish or vegetables in the same way a squeeze of lemon or a vinaigrette might.
Review:
Superbly cool, restrained and refined, this austere, beautiful dry riesling is a slow-burn masterpiece that's only just beginning to reveal its complex white-peach, white-tea, wild-herb and dark-berry character. Super-long and mineral finish. Drink or hold.
-James Suckling 97 Points
Pago de Carraovejas Cuesta Liebres is made from 100% Tinto Fino. The plot is located on a terraced hillside located at 900 m above sea level with slopes that range between inclines of 30% and 40%. Red cherry color with purple hues. Ripe fruit aromas, vanilla notes. Suave and unctuous in the mouth. A strong and noble character.
The harvest is carried out by hand using small crates and after passing through a refrigerated container it is transferred into tanks via gravity. The alcoholic and malolatic fermentation is carried out in small French “Haute Futaie” Oak casks with unique and original local yeasts and fermenting bacteria from the vineyard itself, to bring out the very best of the terroir, respecting the uniqueness of each and every vintage. Clarified with egg whites and bottled by gravity with natural cork stoppers.
Review:
"From the vineyard of the same name, the 2021 Cuesta De Las Liebres is a knockout, from a hillside vineyard of terraced vines. Aged 24 months in French oak, the first year in new, the second in second-use, all fine-grained, and bottled in June 2024, the tannins are well-integrated and dusty, nearly chalky. It’s truly a beautiful expression of variety, vintage, and site, reaching perfection in its fine-tuned, full-bodied layers of rich cassis, oak spice, and even a touch of garrigue. There’s lovely acidity throughout that brightens the palate, with beguiling notes of violet that never fade away. It’s a seamless, polished, gorgeous wine that will be hard to resist, though aging will continue to see it melt into one over the next 15-18 years. - Virginie BOONE"
- Jeb DUNNUCK (August 2025), 100 pts