Wine & Spirits - August 2018 - 73

US NEW RELEASES
of grapefruit and tangerine, the full-bodied
ripeness of Napa Valley fruit presented here
in a clean white, its acidity integrated into
a green-apple snap and spiciness that races
through the finish. Pour it with seafood sausage. (2,700 cases)
512317

92 | Benziger

$36

2016 Sonoma Mountain Estate, Paradiso
de Maria Sauvignon Blanc ^ The Benziger
family adopted biodynamic farming at their
Sonoma Mountain home vineyard in the
mid-1990s, farmed under Demeter certification. At first, this sauvignon seems soft and
round, with lemon-curd richness. But even
if it initially comes across as quiet, there's a
powerful, headstrong wine underneath, with
the gentle tannic grip of grape skins, mild
toastiness from the lees and the freshness of
mountain air. The lasting impression is bold,
substantial enough to serve with aged goat
cheese. (515 cases)
511776

90 | Clockwise

CA L IFORNIA RED
CABERNET SAUVIGNON
511726

95 | Corison

$175

2015 St. Helena Sunbasket Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon ^ André Tchelistcheff originally planted this vineyard for Beaulieu and,
three decades ago, Cathy Corison began
working with fruit from the site, just north
of her winery on the west side of Highway
29. She purchased the vineyard in 2014. That
year, it was the cabernet franc that showed
remarkable briskness and cool spice. In 2015,
it's the cabernet sauvignon that shines, with
that coolness of deep-rooted cabernet harvested at the right time. It's full and lush, the
flavors extending into a savory, red-fruited
finish, meaty and rich rather than sweet.
Its concentration doesn't get in the way of
its dynamic energy, which brings out floral notes and cool spice, lasting with gentle
grace. (200 cases)

$30

2017 Russian River Valley Sauvignon
Blanc ^ Half of this wine is sauvignon musque, bringing out a green lime flavor; all of
it ages in neutral oak, enriching the texture
into creaminess. It feels chalky and firm, a
full-bodied sauvignon for roast monkfish.
(475 cases)

511927

94 | Silverado

511792

90 | Geyser Peak

$14

2016 California Sauvignon Blanc (Best
Buy) ^ Here's a steal: a clean, fruit-driven sauvignon for $14, full of pear and guava flavors,
along with some notes of green melon rind.
It has the freshness of a fruit sorbet, and it's
ready to underscore the flavors of sea bass
ceviche.
511693

90 | St. Francis

$22

2017 Sonoma Valley Wild Oak Vineyard
Sauvignon Blanc (Best Buy) ^ Notes of green
pear and kiwi introduce this clean, toasty
sauvignon. It's full and fat, with scents of
freshly steamed rice, which make it a good
choice for sushi. (790 cases)

$50

2014 Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon ^
Jon Emmerich captured currant-scented
freshness in his 2014, an estate-grown blend
focused on Silverado's home vineyard in the
Stags Leap District and their Mt. George
Vineyard in Coombsville. Its feels open
and airy, the fruit pretty though the flavors
are dark, firm and intensely concentrated.
There's a spark of eucalyptus and mint to
spice up the finish, layering over silken richness. The length of flavor suggests this will
age well over the next five years.
511725

93 | Corison

$95

2015 St. Helena Cabernet Sauvignon ^
Chewy and warm when first opened, this
wine takes time to settle into cooler tones
of roses, herbs and tobacco. Its dark-berry
flavors are gentle and savory, its tannins
fine. Cathy Corison blends this wine from
fruit grown in three benchland sites west of
Highway 29, at the border between Rutherford and St. Helena. (1,600 cases)
512972

93 | Heitz Cellar

$150

92 | Flora Springs

$125

92 | Heitz Cellar

$250

2013 Howell Mountain Linda Falls Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon ^ The Heitz family
planted seven acres of cabernet sauvignon in
2002, close to a nature preserve at the southern end of the Howell Mountain AVA. They
farm it organically, the vines growing at 1,500
feet in volcanic soils. This 2013 is the first
release of a single-vineyard cabernet from
the site, a wine that aged for a year in oak
tanks, then 18 months in French oak barrels,
where it mellowed any aggressive mountain
tannins into a sleek and harmonious mountain-grown red. The fruit is luscious, centered
on red plum, round and spicy. It's powerful
and grand, even as it's remarkably soft for a
Howell Mountain wine. (450 cases)
512091
2015 Napa Valley Out of Sight Cabernet
Sauvignon ^ This estate vineyard is hidden on
a northwest-facing hillside off the Silverado
Trail, between Oak Knoll and Coombsville.
Farmed under organics, it produced a rich
cabernet that delivers a trumpet blast of
power when it's first poured. Give it time in a
decanter and the wine's harmony comes into
view, with brisk red-currant flavors melding
into the darkness of the tannins. It's a sleek
Napa Valley red to age five years or more.
(391 cases)
511764
2013 Napa Valley Martha's Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon ^ This is a powerful vintage
of Martha's Vineyard, a huge wine following
a graceful line, so it's neither overwhelming
nor oversaturated. It has the structural elasticity of 2013 in its tannins, a salty umami
note that highlights the dark currant and
green fig flavors. Joe Heitz made the first
Martha's Vineyard cabernet in 1966, from
the May family's 34-acre parcel in western
Oakville, with a small-berried selection of
cabernet that gives the concentrated fruit
for this wine. (2,900 cases)
512209

92 | Robert John Vineyard

$90

92 | Robert John Vineyard

$90

2013 Coombsville Cabernet Sauvignon ^
Patrick Saboe makes this wine from the
D'Ambrosio Vineyard in Coombsville. It's a
tense and heady cabernet with some eucalyptus notes keeping it savory, the richness
reading as iron and smoke, like blood sausage. That meatiness, along with the caramelized edges brought out by the oak, makes it a
match for slow-smoked beef ribs. (300 cases)
512208
2012 Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon ^
This is a blend of fruit from two vineyards,
WINE & SPIRITS

AUGUST 2018

https://shop.silveradovineyards.com/product/Silverado-Vineyards-2014-Cabernet-Sauvignon?pageID=8D1A8C61-C18F-371A-9C19-EDBF7DD3146E&sortBy=DisplayOrder&maxRows=999& http://www.geyserpeakwinery.com

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Wine & Spirits - August 2018