Wine & Spirits - December 2019 - 51

YEAR'S BEST US CABERNETS & BLENDS
518055

517934

90 | Corison

$195

2016 St. Helena Napa Valley Kronos Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon ^ All structure for
now, this wine's tannins surround its fruit
like an oversized suit. That fruit is sweet red
cherry, hibiscus and plum while the tannins
are hard, with the dark savor of tobacco and
bitter chocolate. The pre-phylloxera cabernet
vines at Kronos date to 1971 and are some of
the oldest in Napa Valley; they deliver a concentrated wine that needs bottle age. Check
on this in a year or two and it's likely to be
transformed. (W&S 10/19; 400 cases) -J.G.

S TA G S L E A P D I S T R I C T
517094

94 | Shafer

$295

2014 Stags Leap District Napa Valley Hillside Select Cabernet Sauvignon ^ John Shafer helped define the voice of Stags Leap
District cabernet sauvignon with the early
releases from the knolls he and his son,
Doug, planted under the escarpment in
southeastern Napa Valley. The first release,
from 1978, was dark, layered and rich, soft
enough that people questioned him about
how much merlot there was in the blend. The
cabernet went on to become a cult phenomenon in the 1990s, and Elias Fernandez, who
has made the wine since the early 1980s, continued to push the limits of richness and ripeness, even as his other cabernet (One Point
Five) remained relatively restrained. While
we regularly recommend One Point Five, our
panels have passed on the recent releases of
Hillside Select since 2010. Then this 2014
came along, integrated in its richness, merlot-like in its graceful power, with zesty fruit
one panelist described as "fresh crushed marionberries and blackberries." That freshness
was still intact three days later, the fruit lasting as it infused the tannins with color. If you
loved the early vintages of Hillside Select
(think 1978 or 1991 for two great examples),
and even if you loved the most recent heady
styles, this is a 2014 you'll want in your cellar.
(W&S 8/19; 2,400 cases) -J.G.
518054

92 | Stag's Leap
Wine Cellars

$295

2016 Stags Leap District Napa Valley
Cask 23 Cabernet Sauvignon ^ This is Marcus Notaro's top selection from SLWC's two
estate vineyards, the rockier hillsides of SLV
and the alluvial wash at Fay. It's a powerful
2016 that sustains a brisk sense of freshness.
Plump and floral, with a gentle intensity, its
flavors come on with the continuous flow
of an infinity pool. That quiet, round insistence should hold the wine for years to come.
(W&S 10/19; 3,000 cases) -J.G.

92 | Stag's Leap
Wine Cellars

YOUNTVILLE
$195

2016 Stags Leap District Napa Valley SLV
Cabernet Sauvignon ^ There's a cool, zesty
feel to this vintage of SLV, the wine's black
fruit accented by notes of bergamot, basil
and mint. The alcohol comes across as richness, completely integrated into the dark
fruit, the wine soft but firm in its dark-chocolate tannins. This should age well, or decant
it now for short ribs cooked until the meat
begins to fall off the bones. (W&S 10/19;
2,250 cases) -J.G.
518387

91 | Raymond

$108

90 | Pine Ridge

$140

2016 Stags Leap District Napa Valley District Collection Cabernet Sauvignon ^ The
region's distinctive tannins lend this silken
cabernet a layered richness and a supple feel.
Oak adds notes of roasted coffee beans and
bitter chocolate, deepening the red-currant
flavor. Gentle and round, it's ready for a juicy
steak or grilled portobellos. (217 cases) -J.G.
518336
2016 Stags Leap District Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon ^ This smells like chocolate
and tastes like a chocolate creampuff at
first. As the wine develops with air, it reveals
plummy fruit that's dense and concentrated,
along with tart acidity to check some of the
heady richness. Built for a steakhouse. (2,080
cases) -J.G.

517591

94 | Clockwise

$68

2016 Yountville Napa Valley Cabernet
Sauvignon ^ Though Steve MacRostie and
winemaker Heidi Bridenhagen are best
known for chardonnay and pinot noir from
their home base in the Russian River Valley
and the coast, they produce this new label
at their Eighth Street Winery in the town of
Sonoma. They went for a muscular style of
cabernet, using grapes from a vineyard in
western Yountville, pushing for full extraction, attaining that power and grip while
still sustaining supple grace in the tannins.
It's lovely benchland juice, the earthy-brisk
tannins suffused with cherry and blueberry
highlights up front, so you can almost feel
the tannins integrated into the scent of the
wine. The wine's energy pours out in the finish, a spout of blackberry and black currant
flavors, a pure flavor of cabernet sauvignon.
(W&S 10/19; 475 cases) -J.G.

SONOMA COUNTY
518652

90 | St. Francis

$72

89 | Arrowood

$30

2016 Sonoma County Anthem Meritage ^ A
smooth, rich, black-raspberry-scented blend,
this wine feels smooth, lush and integrated.
Chris Louton focused the blend on cabernet
sauvignon (60 percent), along with malbec,
merlot and cabernet franc, creating a red
that's zesty, juicy and firm. Pour it with roast
quail. (960 cases) -J.G.
518320
2016 Sonoma County Sonoma Estates
Cabernet Sauvignon (Best Buy) ^ This wine's
gentle red fruit is clean and fresh, with simple flavors of strawberries and bright notes
of Maraschino cherries. There's some blackpepper spice to the light tannins, directing it
toward grilled chicken. -J.G.

517925

90 | Silverado Vineyards

$125

2016 Stags Leap District Napa Valley Solo
Cabernet Sauvignon ^ Jon Emmerich focuses
this wine on the Heritage Disney Silverado
clone, isolated at Silverado's estate vineyards in the Stags Leap District in 1989 by
Phil Freese and Deborah Golino. It's classic
Stags Leap District cabernet in its softness
and richness, a textural pleasure amplified
by blueberry flavors and smoky oak. Simple
and grapey in its youth, this will gain depth
as it ages past its primary fruit. (W&S 10/19;
1,106 cases) -J.G.

ALEXANDER VALLEY
516164

93 | Rodney Strong

$75

2015 Alexander Valley Alexander's Crown
Cabernet Sauvignon ^ Rodney Strong
planted this vineyard in 1971 on a dome rising out of the Alexander Valley floor. In line
to receive the cooling afternoon breezes from
the Pacific, this vineyard has often produced
a cabernet on the far edge of lean; in 2015,
however, the wine is firmly concentrated and
luscious, though nothing close to a massive
beast. For this vintage, winemaker Justin
Seidenfeld separated the vineyard into ten
blocks, based on factors such as aspect and,
most importantly, flavor. That allowed him
WINE & SPIRITS

DECEMBER 2019

51


https://www.silveradovineyards.com/shop/item/2016-solo-cabernet-sauvignon

Wine & Spirits - December 2019

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Wine & Spirits - December 2019

Contents
Wine & Spirits - December 2019 - Cover1
Wine & Spirits - December 2019 - Cover2
Wine & Spirits - December 2019 - 1
Wine & Spirits - December 2019 - 2
Wine & Spirits - December 2019 - 3
Wine & Spirits - December 2019 - 4
Wine & Spirits - December 2019 - Contents
Wine & Spirits - December 2019 - 6
Wine & Spirits - December 2019 - 7
Wine & Spirits - December 2019 - 8
Wine & Spirits - December 2019 - 9
Wine & Spirits - December 2019 - 10
Wine & Spirits - December 2019 - 11
Wine & Spirits - December 2019 - 12
Wine & Spirits - December 2019 - 13
Wine & Spirits - December 2019 - 14
Wine & Spirits - December 2019 - 15
Wine & Spirits - December 2019 - 16
Wine & Spirits - December 2019 - 17
Wine & Spirits - December 2019 - 18
Wine & Spirits - December 2019 - 19
Wine & Spirits - December 2019 - 20
Wine & Spirits - December 2019 - 21
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Wine & Spirits - December 2019 - 23
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Wine & Spirits - December 2019 - 25
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Wine & Spirits - December 2019 - 27
Wine & Spirits - December 2019 - 28
Wine & Spirits - December 2019 - 29
Wine & Spirits - December 2019 - 30
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Wine & Spirits - December 2019 - 49
Wine & Spirits - December 2019 - 50
Wine & Spirits - December 2019 - 51
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Wine & Spirits - December 2019 - 95
Wine & Spirits - December 2019 - 96
Wine & Spirits - December 2019 - Cover3
Wine & Spirits - December 2019 - Cover4
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