Country: | United States |
Regions: | California California (Napa) |
Winery: | Far Niente |
Grape Type: | Cabernet Sauvignon |
Organic: | Yes |
Vintage: | 2019 |
Bottle Size: | 750 ml |
Far Niente Post & Beam Napa Cabernet Sauvignon is made from 100 percent Napa Cabernet Sauvignon.
At Post & Beam, we make wines of pure expression, built on generations of hands-on experience producing acclaimed Cabernet Sauvignon and Chardonnay. Backed by the expertise and legacy of Far Niente Wine Estates, we use time-honored techniques to make exceptional wines that can be enjoyed upon release. Our expertise of winemaking at the highest level has enabled us to create wines that seamlessly unite tradition and modernity.
The 2022 Post & Beam Cabernet Sauvignon displays seductive aromas of briar patch and plum sauce on the nose before leading onto a palate that is well-structured yet elegant. Round and textured on the palate, the entry is layered with cassis and blackberry. The finish exudes vanilla, mocha, and cocoa flavors alongside resolved tannins.
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:
"Deep garnet-purple colored, the 2019 Cabernet Sauvignon Sage Ridge Vineyard opens with open-knit notes of plum preserves, baked blackberries and boysenberry jam, leading to a core of crème de cassis, mocha, camphor and Indian spices with a touch of unsmoked cigars. The palate is full-bodied, concentrated and dense with black fruit preserves, framed by soft tannins and seamless freshness, finishing very long and very spicy. Only 75 cases were made. - Lisa Perrotti-Brown"
- Robert Parker's Wine Advocate (November 2021), 95 pts
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
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:
“The 2019 Cabernet Sauvignon (Napa Valley) is a powerful, tannic wine. In some vintages, the Napa Valley bottling is quite accessible, but not here. Swaths of tannin wrap around a core of dark fruit, gravel, spice, dried flowers, lavender and charred earth are pushed forward, with firm, chocolatey tannins that wrap it all together. The 2019 is a bruiser, that is for sure.”
-Vinous 93+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
Far Niente Post & Beam Napa Cabernet Sauvignon is made from 100 percent Napa Cabernet Sauvignon.
Pure, fresh plum, violet, and sage aromas lead to a round palate layered with ripe plum, dark berry, and blackcurrant flavors. Leather, cedar, and dried herb accents, along with whispers of vanilla and oak provide depth, while lithe acidity keeps the wine lifted, balanced, and bright. Supple tannins feel like suede-velvet and carry the elegant fruit and spice flavors into a finish that goes on and on. This debut vintage is pure finesse.
From start to finish, the 2018 growing season was nearly pitch perfect. Our first buds appeared early, with a mild spring giving us extended flowering, uniform clusters and balanced vines. Summer’s slow, consistent temperatures allowed fruit to hang for extended time on the vine. Harvest began in early October, with fruit coming into the winery that was perfectly ripe with beautiful phenolic maturity.
The Far Niente Winery was established in 1885 by John Benson, a forty-niner of the California gold rush and uncle of the famous American impressionist painter, Winslow Homer. Artistry clearly ran in the family because Benson hired Hamden McIntyre, creator of the former Christian Brothers Winery—now the Culinary Institute of America at Greystone—to design the building. The building itself is a piece of art designed to both astound the eye, and the palate, since it functioned as a gravity flow winery, gently moving the grapes through each stage of production.
Our first Chardonnay harvest took place in 1979. That vintage, along with the '80 and '81 vintages, were made off site. In 1982, winemaking returned to Far Niente with the first crush of Cabernet Sauvignon. Today, Far Niente remains focused on Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon and Chardonnay so that it can continue to concentrate its efforts on creating two varietal wines of astonishing quality.
Far Niente prospered until the onset of Prohibition in 1919, whereupon it fell into disrepair. Sixty years later, in 1979, Gil Nickel purchased the winery and adjacent vineyard and began a three-year restoration process which resulted in its placement on the National Register of Historic Places.
Post and Beam
Named for the simple yet elegant barns that dot the American landscape as an enduring reminder of our history, Post & Beam represents craftsmanship, tradition, legacy, and purity. There’s nothing unnecessary or overly complicated about a post and beam barn. It just works beautifully. The same can be said for our wines. They are simple, elegant, pure expressions of each grape in its finest form.
Post & Beam wines are the consummate examples of Cabernet and Chardonnay and nothing else. And for people who truly love wine, that’s usually more than enough.
La Motte Sauvignon Blanc is made from 100% Sauvignon Blanc.
This wine was made from grapes originating from vineyards in several areas of the Cape Winelands — Franschhoek (25%), Stellenbosch (50%) and the Cape South Coast (25%).
Light straw in color with hint of green. Lots of fresh winter melon and gooseberry with distinctive lime aromas very typical to La Motte Sauvignon Blanc. Silky and soft on the pallet with a fruity green apple aftertaste. Lower acidity than the average year but well in balance with a lower residual sugar.
With its natural acidity and acute texture, the La Motte Sauvignon Blanc pairs beautifully with seafood, light pastas and spicy Chinese and Thai dishes. This white wine also goes extremely well with acute seasonings, and salty eats such as pre-dinner canapés. A natural partner to goat’s cheese. On its own, a refreshing aperitif white wine.
Mordoree Lirac Rouge Reine des Bois equal parts Grenache, Syrah and Mourvedre
Color : deep dark red, with blueish hints.
Aromas : highly fruity ( raspberry, billberry, blackberry ), floral (violet) and intense with a grilled touch ( coffee ).
Palate : melted and concentrated tannins, full bodied, very long fresh finish.
Ageing potential : 8 to 10 years
Grilled meats, sauce meats, game birds, game rabbits and semi-mature cheeses.
Review:
"This Syrah, Grenache, Mourvedre blend grows on 40-year-old vines among the galets roulés – large stone pebbles, on sand and clay soils. While 10% is fermented in used casks, 90% of the wine goes in stainless steel. It’s a garden of heather and sage, with chocolate mint and salted, cured meats and anise. Its prowess shows in its red fruit aromas, its elegant mouthfeel, and freshness on the palate."
- The Tasting Panel (January/February 2022), 95 pts
"Stunningly fresh and pure forest-berry and herb aromas pour from the glass of this rich, yet beautifully proportioned Lirac. Beautiful integration of tannin, fruit and alcohol on the full yet silky and fresh palate. Long, velvety finish that pulls you back for more. From organically grown grapes. Drink or hold."
- James Suckling (February 2022), 94 pts
Leindl Riesling Zobinger Heiligenstein Kamptal is made from 100 percent Riesling.
Medium yellow green. Fine nuances of ripe apricot, a hint of yellow apple, delicate herbs and spices, mineral Touch, hints of candied orange zest. Juicy, elegant, fine stone fruit, touch of finesse acidity, salty minerality in the finish, remains long, already well to drink.
Cold Fermentation.
Aged on the lees for 12 months in Stainless Steel tank. No Oak.
No ML
Review:
"Anything but dramatic, this is a concentrated and beautifully crafted Heiligenstein dry riesling with the racy acidity and stony minerality we expect from this site. Very sleek and straight finish that some may find a bit tart, but we find very exciting. Sustainable. Drink or hold. - Stuart PIGOTT"
- James Suckling (Top 100 wines of Austria 2023, December 5th 2023), 94 pts