STAG'S LEAP WINE CELLARS ARTEMIS CABERNET SAUVIGNON 2005 Napa Valley
708982
(XD) 750 mL $49
Stag's Leap Wine Cellars makes their Napa Valley regional wines with the same care as their single vineyard creations. The majority of the blend is from their Arcadia vineyard, though they also use 'flavouring' elements from their two greatest vineyards, SLV and FAY. Artemis is flavourful with aromas of cassis, caramel, truffle, black pepper and black olive. It has classic claret qualities on the palate with a gentle cedar tone supporting all the fruit. Enjoy this on a cold winter's night with wild game meats. Why? Artemis was the Greek goddess of the hunt. It may also be cellared for 5+ years.
DUCKHORN CABERNET SAUVIGNON 2004 Napa Valley
24190
(XD) 750 mL $69
TASTING NOTE: Rich and concentrated, with a tight, plush mix of currant, fresh earth, herb, anise and mocha, all tightly focused, deep and complex. Ends with a long, pure finish that keeps the fruit and oak at the center. Drink now through 2014.
Score - 90.
(James Laube,
www.winespectator.com, Web Only, 2007)
DUCKHORN MERLOT ESTATE GROWN 2004 Napa Valley
921346
(XD) 750 mL $99
A very Napa Valley Merlot with aromas of currant, black cherry, dark chocolate, spices and oak. It is rich and round, fairly sweet with fine tannins and a lingering black cherry finish. Ageable 3-5 years, or match it tonight to a roast leg of lamb.
Stag's Leap's 'Cask 23' is produced only in the the very best vintages. The fruit is sourced from their prime vineyards in the Stags Leap District, SLV (Stag's Leap Vineyard) and FAY. They refine the sourcing even further selecting fruit from certain sub-blocks that consistently yield fruit of exceptional quality. Then they take it a step further. Depending on vintage, within that sub-block they pick vine by vine, ignoring certain ones that have not produced the level of quality they desire. They vinify in small lots to ensure the quality of the finished product. Once the best of the best lots are determined, they begin the arduous process of creating the 'perfect' blend. Then, and only then, are they satisfied. Year after year, even in their youth, these wines are incredibly approachable, yet they will also reward a decade or more in a cellar.
Not reviewed at press time, but this single vineyard Cabernet from Stag's Leap Wine Cellars' FAY Vineyard never disappoints. The 2004 vintage was a big success in Napa Valley. Look for the hallmark aromas and flavours of this wine, such as cassis, plum, chocolate, ginger, sandalwood and tobacco. It will be enjoyable upon purchase with a rosemary-crust leg of lamb or cinnamon-infused grilled quail, or cellar it 4-6 years.
STAG'S LEAP WINE CELLARS CABERNET SAUVIGNON SLV 2004 Napa Valley
14027
750 mL $99
On May 24, 1976, a wine tasting took place in Paris that changed the world's view of California wines forever. The tasting was the brainchild of Steven Spurrier, an English wine merchant who owned an innovative wine shop and adjacent wine school in the center of Paris. ... Curious to see how these newcomers would fare against French wines made from the same kind of grapes, he arranged a blind wine tasting in celebration of the American Bicentennial activities in Paris. The French tasters chosen for the event had impeccable professional credentials. The French wines were First and other classified-growth red Bordeaux and white Burgundies. They were matched against California Cabernet Sauvignons and Chardonnays. The tasting was blind, with the identities of the wines concealed and the labels revealed only after the jury of nine tasters had voted its order of preference. The unthinkable happened. [Warren] Winiarski's 1973 Stag's Leap Wine Cellars S.L.V. Cabernet Sauvignon - his first vintage produced with grapes from vines a mere three years old - was judged the best. The Cabernet had bested four top-ranked Bordeaux, including first-growths Château Mouton-Rothschild and Château Haut-Brion ... (www.cask23.com) Try the new vintage of this now-legendary wine and discover what the fuss is all about.
TASTING NOTE: One of the world's most extraordinary Cabernet Sauvignons is the 1,800-2,400-case offering of Shafer's Hillside Select. The 2003 Cabernet Sauvignon Hillside Select is almost as good as the 2002. Its dense purple color is followed by aromas of camphor, black currants, licorice, crushed rocks, and white flowers. While full-bodied, powerful, and enormously endowed, it is not as seamless as the 2002. Impeccable balance, purity, and length suggest it will drink well for 20-25 years. Score - 95.
(Robert Parker Jr.,
www.erobertparker.com, Dec. 2006)
SILVER OAK CABERNET SAUVIGNON 2002 Napa Valley
936039
(XD) 750 mL $109
TASTING NOTE: Not surprisingly, my favorite Napa bottling is the 2002 Cabernet Sauvignon, a blend of 83% Cabernet Sauvignon, 11% Merlot, and the rest Cabernet Franc and a dollop of Petit Verdot. Aromas of olive-tinged, creme de cassis intermixed with sweet vanillin and smoky oak lead to a sweet, chunky, ripe, cedary wine with an attractive texture, an expansive, fruit-forward style, and a spicy finish. It should drink well for 10-12 years. Score - 91.
(Robert Parker Jr.,
www.erobertparker.com, Dec. 2005)
VÉRITÉ LA JOIE 2002 Sonoma County
710285
(XD) 750 mL $165
TASTING NOTE: The full-bodied, classically-styled, Bordeaux-like 2002 La Joie's (64.2% Cabernet Sauvignon, 28.5% Merlot, 7% Cabernet Franc, and .3% Malbec) deep ruby/purple color is followed by gorgeous aromas of black truffles, scorched earth, tobacco leaves, blackberry and cassis liqueur, and notions of minerals as well as acacia flowers. This stunning red can be drunk in 2-3 years, or cellared for two decades. Score - 98.
(Robert Parker Jr.,
www.erobertparker.com, Feb. 2005)
STAG'S LEAP WINE CELLARS CHARDONNAY KARIA 2005 Napa Valley
54585
(XD) 750 mL $29
Karia (CAR-ee-a) is Greek for graceful, and this wine could not be better named. With its gentle tropical fruit notes and perfectly poised palate (acid, fruit and oak all work in harmony with each other), this wine has exceptional ageing potential (4-6 years), or enjoy it tonight with grilled salmon with a lemon/dill sauce.
RIDGE CHARDONNAY MONTE BELLO 2004 Santa Cruz Mountains
712554
(XD) 750 mL $75
Ridge Vineyard's Paul Draper ... is arguably the greatest winemaker America has ever produced ... [and] makes some of the finest California chardonnays on the market ... It is hard to think of a winery anywhere in the world that has produced such consistently great wines over so long a period of time. With Draper, it's been almost all peaks, no troughs ... Although Ridge has production facilities in Sonoma County, the winery itself is set in the Santa Cruz mountains, far removed from the hype and glamour of Napa and (increasingly) Sonoma. Out of sight doesn't, in this instance, mean out of mind, but it perhaps explains why Draper doesn't get the attention he deserves. But that remote mountaintop location is also partly responsible for the quality of the Monte Bello cabernet and the chardonnay - the high-altitude vineyards produce wonderfully ripe fruit but also infuse the wines with a pronounced mineral component, a rare quality in most California cabernets and chardonnays but a hallmark of nearly all the great European wines. (Mike Steinberger, www.slate.com, Nov. 21, 2006)
