Octopoda Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley 2021

This 100% Cabernet Sauvignon offers an incredible aroma of big black, rich fruit, spring flowers, graphite and toast.  Full-bodied with stunning concentration and flavors of dark cherries, black plum, melted milk chocolate.  Well integrated French oak, this well balanced wine has supple, but ripe tannins and a lengthy finish.  From a single vineyard in Oakville.  14 months in 60% new French oak, Excellent value for Oakville-Napa Valley.  Just 350 cases produced. 

Clif Lede Cabernet Sauvignon Stags Leap  is made from 82% Cabernet Sauvignon, 8% Merlot, 7% Cabernet Franc, 3% Petit Verdot.

Our Stags Leap District and Calistoga estate vineyards build the foundation of this wine with support from valued grower sites located in Oakville, Rutherford, and Howell Mountain. Composed of small batches from a variety of blocks of varying age, this wine represents a diverse range of carefully selected rootstocks and clones. Yields are maintained at sparse levels, with a focus on canopy management and vine balance. The resulting blend boasts a remarkable depth and complexity that is quintessential Napa Valley.

Grapes were picked in the darkness of the early morning hours. The freshly-harvested fruit immediately underwent rigorous selection by our three-tiered sorting process, which included our cutting-edge optical sorter. Whole berries were gently delivered by gravity to tank using our crane system, minimizing disruption of berry integrity. Cold soaks lasted approximately seven days, and fermentations were managed via a combination of délestage, pumpovers, and punchdowns. Extended maceration ranging from four to five weeks fine-tuned our tannin profiles, allowing us to perfect mouth feel and wine complexity. The wine was aged in French oak barrels, 48% of which were new, for twenty-one months.

Elegantly soft and lithe the 2021 coaxes the taster with warm dark chocolate and luscious black cherry aromas. More graphite, chocolate cake, crushed mulberries, and iron notes leap from the glass. The entry is filled with dark fruit flavors of cassis, blackberry, and blue berries and they’re all tinged with floral notes of jasmine and violets. The polished tannins along the finish feel Cashmere-like and beg the taster for another sip. – Christopher Tynan, Director of Winemaking

 Review:

So silky and drinkable at the first sip, this well-concentrated wine feels tight and restrained with more tastes, holding its trove of black fruits, cedar, cinnamon and dark chocolate in a rich blanket of extra-fine tannins. Its complexity, layering and lingering finish are something special.  

-Wine Enthusiast 94 Points

Far Niente Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon is made from 88% Cabernet Sauvignon, 6.5% Merlot, 2.5% Malbec, 2.5% Petit Verdot, 0.5% Cabernet Franc.

Beautiful aromas of dark plum, red cherry, licorice and warm baking spices open onto a plush and silky palate layered with plum, spiced cherry and cassis. A classic Napa Valley Cabernet, fine-grained tannins and lively acidity support the wine throughout, while the finish is refined and polished.

Review:

Very precisely polished and focused wine with aromas of black cherries, blue berries and violets followed by green bell pepper, black ink and gravel. Underlying umami notes, too. Full-bodied, firm yet finely grained juicy tannins with bright acidity that balances out the palate. Beautifully integrated toasty notes and baking spices on the mid-palate and in the finish. Flourishing and artful wine that will age gracefully.

-James Suckling 96 Points

Lexicon Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley is made from 100 percent Cabernet Sauvignon. 

Lexicon varietal wines are carefully selected by Fran Kysela to show the essence of each variety, along with its terroir of origin, both of which are essential elements of a good wine.

Lexicon Cabernet Sauvignon offers rich and concentrated fruit aromas of red and black currant, cassis and black cherry along with black pepper and dried herb accents. It is soft and generous in the mouth, intense and complex, with supple tannins and elegant structure.

Pair with: Grilled meat, ribeye steak, filet mignon, roasted lamb with fresh herbs, cheesburger, semi-hard cheeses, truffled brie, portobello mushrooms.

Silver Oak Cellars Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon is made from  76.61% Cabernet Sauvignon, 18.13% Merlot, 2.56% Cabernet Franc, 2.32% Petit Verdot, 0.38% Malbec.

Expressive and lively on the nose, the 2019 Silver Oak Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon has a black cherry and huckleberry aroma laced with dry floral notes. Integrated oak adds a light note of sweet nutmeg to this wine. Ruby in color, it has a fruit-forward entry with silky tannins that builds across the mid-palate and through a long and balanced finish. Structured while still approachable, this wine remains true to the signature Silver Oak winemaking style and will continue to improve through 2047 given proper cellaring conditions.

 Review:

A beautifully compact wine that delivers complex and nuanced aromas of Bing cherry and black raspberry with tobacco, currant leaf, and cedarwood laced with dried sage. Cool raspberry, cherry, and blackberry fruit are perfectly represented, and the lengthy finish is crisp, lively, and energetic.

Decanter 96 Points

Irresistible ripened plums and opulent dusty blackberries lift the senses, alluring the nose to tertiary notes of delicate florals and intriguing mineral edges. Balance is the defining quality of this wine; even in its youth, 2021 Black Label is resolutely complete from beginning to end. Every element is in place, as dimpled yet silky tannins unfold with grace and finesse, revealing a core of power and depth. Broad strokes of black mulberries, crème de cassis, and juniper accelerate through the mid-palate with captivating width and focus. This thrilling dance culminates in a stunning finish of opulent and elegant dark fruits that persist with each sip, leaving an indelible impression of the near-perfect growing season that shaped the Fortuna Vineyard—full of power and sinue—and Leopoldina Vineyard—full of poise and intention—in the 2021 vintage.

"Stunning stuff, the 2021 Cabernet Sauvignon Black Label offers a full-bodied, deep, majestic style as well as beautiful aromatics of cr me de cassis, violets, flowers, and nicely integrated background oak. It has ultra-fine tannins, flawless balance, and a regal, age-worthy style that has so much to love. It, however, is not going to be for the instant gratification crowd and this actually shut down pretty quickly with air. I would hide bottle for 4-6 years and it s going to cruise over the following two decades in cold cellars."

- 97 Points Jeb Dunnuck