Search results for: 'mountain+red'

98 Points! A 60-40 blend of Cabernet Franc and Merlot, the 2021 Proprietary Red Wine Sugarloaf Mountain exudes sensual aromas of mocha and black cherries underscored by gentle hints of tobacco and sage. Full-bodied, plush and supple, with a long, softly dusty finish, this makes a compelling argument for non-Cabernet Sauvignon wines in Napa. - Joe Czerwinski, robertparker.com

97+ Points! Gorgeous blue fruits, mountain scrub brush, sage, espresso, black raspberry, and violet notes all emerge from the 2021 Proprietary Red Sugarloaf Mountain Vineyard, a blend of Cabernet Franc and Merlot that's full-bodied and has terrific overall balance, building, fine-grained tannins, and a good spine of acidity that carries through the finish. This is another gorgeous wine in the lineup that shines for its complexity, balance, and depth. - Jeb Dunnuck

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99 Points! The 2019 Estate Red is another magical wine from winemaker Sam Kaplan. Based on 82% Cabernet Sauvignon, 6% Cabernet Franc, 6% Petit Verdot, and the rest Merlot and Malbec, all from the estate on Howell Mountain, it offers up a dense purple hue to go with stunningly pure cassis and darker currant fruits, full-bodied richness, ultra-fine tannins, and a complex, nuanced style in its leafy herbs, flowers, scorched earth, and classy oak aromas and flavors. It’s brilliant any way you look at it. Hide bottles for 4-5 years, count yourself lucky, and enjoy over the following three decades. - Jeb Dunnuck

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Napa isn't just about Cabernet. This Saint Emilion-inspired red is a brilliant blend of 50% Cabernet Franc and 50% Merlot from a single vineyard site on Spring Mountain. Silky, complex, redolent of baking spices, plush enough to enjoy now but built for another decade of cellaring if you so choose...

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96 Points! The 2019 Bel Canto is more Cabernet Franc-dominated and includes 17% Merlot. While it doesn't match the 2018, it's a beauty offering impressive redcurrant and spiced plum fruits, notes of spicy oak, dried flowers, and leafy herbs, medium to full body, a pure, seamless, gorgeous texture, and ultra-fine tannins. It's just a stunning Cabernet Franc from Washington State that offers incredible pleasure today given its balance and texture yet will evolve for 20+ years. 290 cases. - Jeb Dunnuck

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93 Points! The 2022 Pinot Noir (Santa Cruz Mountains) is gorgeous. Bright, vibrant and bristling with energy, the 2022 is an absolute delight. Dark red cherry, orange peel, spice and dried herbs lend notable aromatic presence. Pretty floral overtones appear on the finish, adding expansive breath. Stems range from 33% to 67% depending on each of the various lots that go into the blend. - Antonio Galloni, Vinous Media

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98 Points! Perfumed aromas of subtle currants, roses, lavender and sage, following through to a medium body with super-fine tannins that caress the palate and leave it fresh and inspired. A gorgeous and graceful 2022. Drinkable now, but better in 2028. - JamesSuckling.com

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96 Points! More intense than the 2018, the 2019 Cabernet Sauvignon blends 87% Cabernet Sauvignon, 15% Merlot, 4% Cabernet Franc, and 1% Petit Verdot into an elegantly medium-bodied mountain expression of rounded tannins, crunchy red fruit, and notes of iron and smoked meat. From the estate's 1,600-foot elevation, it shows plenty of structure and tannin power without being heavy, though it will benefit greatly, as these wines always do, from decanting and/or aging another 10-20 years. - JebDunnuck.com

From the winery:

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94 Points! Rich, deep and effusive, the 2016 Pinot Noir Santa Cruz Mountain Estates is a fabulous introduction to the Clos de la Tech wines. Black cherry, mocha, chocolate, licorice, leather and sweet spice are all dialed up. Readers can expect an opulent, full-throttle Pinot that is all about exuberance. This is an exceptional vintage for the Santa Cruz Mountains bottling. - Antonio Galloni, Vinous

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93+ Points! Scents of pine resin and hints of mint accent black cherry and cassis notes on the nose of Ink Grade's 2018 Cabernet Sauvignon Howell Mountain. It's a sturdy, wiry effort, with the ample tannins and coiled intensity that often mark mountain wines, followed by a lingering, gently astringent finish. Like the other reds from Ink Grade, it spent time in a combination of oak tanks and barrels, yet the wood is scarcely noticeable. Give it a few years to unwind. - Joe Czerwinski, robertparker.com

95 Points! Very beautiful aromas of blackcurrants, violets, and lavender with hints of sandalwood. Medium to full body. Chewy mountain tannins, but they are so well integrated and polished that they melt into the wine. Hints of dried cocoa powder at the end with some cedar. From biodynamically grown grapes with Demeter certification. Drink or hold. - JamesSuckling.com

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98 Points! Aged in 100% new oak, the 2022 Monte Bello blends 86% Cabernet Sauvignon, 10% Merlot, 2% Petit Verdot and 2% Cabernet Franc, selected from 18 of 21 lots by blind tasting. After assemblage, the wine spent 21 more months in barrel. The vineyard starts at 1,600 feet and goes up to 2,700 feet at top, and is spread out across 4 different ranches, Klein, Rousten, Torre and Perrone, the wines getting more tightknit and ageable as the vines move up the mountain. By the end of harvest, Monte Bello is split into 55 different blocks, which are then picked and fermented separately. Year after year, this is a “wow” wine, herbal, lightly spiced in oak, with a lovely creamy, velvety texture and a backbone of well-resolved tannin supporting a medium-bodied, balanced spirit of mountain garrigue. These wines typically age 20-25 years or more. - Jeb Dunnuck

97 Points! The limestone soils, and the short distance to the Pacific Ocean as well as the seriously high elevation, (ranging from 1600-2700ft) means that the Santa Cruz Mountains, produce a very different Cabernet than much of California. The 2022, drought vintage, a third straight year, meant tannic, tiny fruit on the Montebello estate. The wine was fully destemmed and only pumped over half as often as a typical vintage for Montebello. Its a tightly wound iteration in its youth with 100% new American oak for 20 months. Expressive on the nose, with taut black fruits, fresh pine needles and mineral notes of wet clay and roasted herbs. The palate is fresh and medium weight, (13.8%abv) with so much lively freshness in its youthful exuberance. Salty ocean notes open the palate chasing taut early season blackberries and plum skins. The palate opens overtime revealing dried mint, and alpine meadow herbs that buoy the fruit expression and carry this masterfully made wine toward its zenith, but… don’t touch it for another 10 years for the best result. - Decanter Magazine

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From the winery:

The 2022 Bald Mountain Zinfandel is the second release of our single vineyard Zinfandel and is comprised of 100% fruit from the Bald Mountain Vineyard. This old vine Zinfandel is grown in the mountain vineyard off of Wall Rd and is one of the most stunning vineyards in the North Coast. The old vines produce a concentrated and ripe Zinfandel that will age for years.The fruit was picked on September 23rd, 2022 and arrived at the winery early in the morning before being destemmed to tank. The wine was then macerated for 14 days until the completion of alcoholic fermentation.  After draining it was racked to 30% new American Oak barrels where is aged for one year before being bottled in August.

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From the winery:

In the 2022 Mountain Zinfandel, our Willow Creek District estate vineyards set the tone with beautiful structure and varietal purity. Grapes from other areas including the Adelaida District and Templeton Gap District bring a layer of ripe, jammy and spicy Zinfandel character. The result is a wine that captures the iconic expression of Paso Robles Zinfandel.

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Only $59.98 at checkout!

We can't tell you where the fruit came from for this bottling but wherever on Howell Mountain it did come from, it is SERIOUS. This is legit $200+ a bottle Cabernet from our favorite AVA for Cab in Napa, rich, deep, dark, spicy, minerally, with abundant but silky tannins, this wine delivers...what a steal.

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From the winery: "This iconic blend of Bordeaux varietals from our Mountain Estate comes from vineyards grown above 1,000 feet elevation. Aromas of black plum, blackberry cobbler and fresh tobacco leaf take the lead, followed by flavors of pink peppercorn, dried sage and coco powder. A rich aromatic profile is coupled with a savory palate for an integrated and compelling finish." Learn More

97 Points! This voluptuous, full-bodied and sleek wine is layered in luxurious blue and black fruits that saturate the palate while superfine tannins shape the middle and finish. Mint and floral notes accent the gorgeous fruits. A truly impressive mountain wine that punches way above its price range. - JamesSuckling.com

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92 Points! The 2016 Cabernet Sauvignon Montecillo aged 20 months in barrel. It has a medium to deep ruby color and classic nose of cedar, black and red currants, blackcurrant bud, warm chocolate and pencil shavings with hints of red cherries, iron and beef drippings. Medium to full-bodied, lush and classically styled in the mouth, it has very ripe, grainy tannins and plenty of freshness to lift that lush fruit, finishing long. Lovely! - Erin Brooks, robertparker.com

 

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98 Points! This minerally, earthy wine is highly impressive, with aromas of black and red currants, wet stones, bay laurel, bitter chocolate, dried flowers and walnuts. The palate is seamlessly balanced, showing depth of fruit, melting tannins and a silken, rounded mouthfeel that has no hard edges. Firm, mouthwatering finish. This is drinking very well now, but can age for decades. Drink or hold. - JamesSuckling.com

97 Points! Dunn's 2022 Cabernet Sauvignon Howell Mountain is the first vintage in a while that didn't get 100% new French oak—it's just 84%. Subtle, cedary oak frames bold cherry and blueberry fruit on the nose of this medium- to full-bodied wine. It's bigger-feeling than the Napa bottling, despite being lower in alcohol (13.9%). Round but structured, firm but silky, with undertones of crushed stone and pencil shavings on the lingering finish, it's a particularly strong effort. - Joe Czerwinski, robertparker.com

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Ripe black fruits dominate the palate, providing a burst of flavors reminiscent of blackberries, dark cherries, and plums. Notes of dark chocolate, toasted oak, and a hint of baking spices add layers of complexity and sophistication to the wine's profile. It is clear this juice came from a serious cellar. How this differs from a lot of other Howell Mountain Cabs is the balance. The combination of the long, cool growing season and the quality of the fruit gives us a wine with that textbook minerality but with impossibly fine tannins. This is a lovely, expressive, polished, ethereal Cabernet that showcases its origins.

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91 Points! From a single vineyard on Howell Mountain, the 2021 Cabernet Sauvignon Coyote Loser shows some of that appellation's characteristic pine and blueberry nuances. It's medium to full-bodied, with ample concentration and ripe tannins, followed by a lingering, silky finish. It's a solid effort from an AVA where bargains—meaning anything worth drinking for less than $100 per bottle—are few and far between. - Joe Czerwinski, robertparker.com

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91 Points! Consumers take note: Barnett's 2021 Cabernet Sauvignon Spring Mountain District is more complex and structured than the MMV bottling yet also less expensive. Sage and bay leaf join black cherries and a hint of vanilla on the nose, while the full-bodied palate is soft and easy drinking but with decent backbone and length and plentiful soft, dusty tannins on the finish. The blend includes 12% Petite Verdot. - Joe Czerwinski, robertparker.com

 

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