2015 Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon
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Tasting notes
The 2015 Cabernet Sauvignon is a powerful, deep wine. Dark-toned fruit, leather, incense, tobacco, dried herbs and graphite are boldly sketched. Broad swaths of tannin envelop the palate, providing an ample frame as the 2015 gradually begins to open with air. This has aged quite well. In fact, it still retains considerable textural intensity and concentration. Readers can look forward to another decade of exceptional drinking.
Critic scores
Average Score
Jancis Robinson MW
Jeb Dunnuck
More reviews and scores
Full bottle 1,341 g. Wet winter, very dry spring then cool early May, which affected flowering and the size of the crop. Warm summer with just one heat spike (106 °F) on 16 August. Picked 4–15 September. 1,000 cases produced. Earthy, ripe, intriguing nose – seems more terroir-driven than stereotypical Napa Cab. Ripe and velvety – not utterly different from a good Pomerol! Long and fresh on the finish. Truly appetising. Really well made. Medium length. (JR)
The 2015 Cabernet Sauvignon remains relatively primary, with cedar and vanilla notes atop cherry and cassis. Medium to full-bodied, it's smooth, rich and supple, concentrated but finessed, finishing long and silky, adding touches of dark chocolate, mocha and licorice. This looks capable of aging for at least another 20 years, but it's far from being inaccessible now.
Always a more powerful, gravelly, graphite-driven expression compared to the seductive Dominus, the 2015 Cabernet Sauvignon offers blackcurrants, scorched earth, graphite, lead pencil, and smoke that give this a Pauillac-like style. Based on primarily Cabernet Sauvignon with a touch of Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot and aged 20 months in 40% new French oak, it's full-bodied, rich, and concentrated, with a great mid-palate and outstanding length. It has aged beautifully and will continue drinking well over the coming decade. Drink 2025-2035.