2013 LPV Cabernet Sauvignon

Offers a powerful, extracted, high-torque core of zesty blackberry, wild berry, anise, licorice and crushed rock flavors. Sails a steady course once underway, ending where it starts, with a dense mix of complex earth and berry notes. Best from 2020 through 2033. 650 cases made.

Amazing aromas of hot stone, iodine, black currants and blackberries. Full body, super polished tannins that highlight the dark fruits, plus white pepper, salt and fruit character. Precise and focused. Better in 2020.

The 2013 Cabernet Sauvignon Beckstoffer Las Piedras Vineyard Lpv comes from clone 337. This is a rather earthy style for a Schrader wine, with less drama and flamboyance, but great fruit, a more meaty, dusty style with underbrush as well as blackcurrants, with spicy oak. It’s dense, full-bodied and promises to age nicely for 20 more years.<br><br> After the remarkable performance of the 2012s, I would be hard-pressed to believe that Schrader could equal or eclipse that vintage, but they seem to have certainly equaled the quality of the 2012s. The 2013s are slightly more coiled and more tightly knit and with probably greater definition. That said, they all possess fabulous concentration and palate presence. Any of these will make a spectacular elixir/vinous treat to serve and consume over the next 25-30+ years. First-time readers may need to do a little research, but this is essentially a clonal study with micro-blends from the famous Oakville vineyard, the Beckstoffer To Kalon Vineyard, and more recently, a look at several other vineyards – the Beckstoffer George III Vineyard in Rutherford and the Beckstoffer Las Piedras Vineyard. Essentially, all of the wines are treated identically – aged in mostly Darnajou with some Taransaud barrels, they tend to always come in around 14.5%-14.7% natural alcohol, spend 20 months in all new oak and are bottled unfiltered. Since the beginning, they have been made by none other than the famed Napa consultant, Thomas Rivers Brown. Oct 2015, wwwerobertparker.com, Drink: 2015-2035