2003 Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley

Bright ruby-red. Very ripe nose shows an almost Margaux-like floral lift to its aromas of boysenberry, licorice and mint. Sweet and elegantly styled, with very suave, nicely delineated flavors of boysenberry, blackberry and violet. Finishes with broad, fine tannins and lovely juicy persistence. Less dense and perhaps lower in extract than the 2004 but brighter and more ethereal. This may well merit an even higher score with three to five years of additional bottle aging.

The 2003 Cabernet Sauvignon is uncommonly approachable. Its dark ruby color is accompanied by sweet aromas of plums, black cherries, and currants. With soft, silky tannin, medium body, and a Bordeaux-like weight, this Cabernet was clearly inspired by Bordeaux clarets. Drink it over the next 7-10 years. (Release date 4/06) Tel. (707) 963-0234; Fax (707) 963-5384

(76% cabernet, about 7% petit verdot and the rest cabernet franc and merlot) Bright medium-deep red. Ripe but bright aromas of raspberry and flowers; almost Burgundian on the nose. Less dense than the 2002 version but perhaps more civilized, with vibrant flavors of cassis and violet. Supple, sweet and harmonious wine, with lovely inner-palate energy. Finishes long and ripely tannic, without any hard edges. Forman told me the grapes were larger in 2003 than in 2002, and yielded a suppler winer.