2001 Seavey Cabernet Sauvignon

Moderately saturated bright, dark red. Inviting, loamy aromas of plum, raspberry, mocha, tobacco leaf and mulch, plus a whiff of leather. Plush, dense and fairly full but lively in the mouth, with good mineral verve framing the supple red fruit, tobacco and earth flavors. Savory and mellow, not black fruit or medicinal in character. Finishes with substantial broad, tongue-and tooth-dusting tannins and lovely savory persistence and soil character.

(14.1% alcohol; includes 5% Petit Verdot): Bright ruby-red. Very ripe, almost liqueur-like aromas of raspberry and spices are also youthful and full of life. Plush and sweet in the middle palate but with very good inner-mouth tension and energy to the fine-grained flavors of raspberry, mocha and menthol. Really opens out and builds on the broad back end, where the tannins are nicely balanced by the wine's material. Long on personality, but with lovely restraint and framing acidity suggesting that this wine is still evolving in a positive way. Very impressive.

Readers looking for a St.-Estephe look-alike should check out this brooding, monster Cabernet Sauvignon from Bill Seavey and winemaker Philippe Melka. Tasting nearly the same as it did eight years ago, it reveals stunning, sweet chocolaty notes interwoven with notions of burning embers, loamy soil, black currants and forest floor. The complex aromatics are followed by a full-bodied, powerful, backward wine that still needs 8-10 years of cellaring. This blend of 95% Cabernet Sauvignon and 5% Petit Verdot from the dry-farmed hillside vineyards of Bill and the late Mary Seavey is a 35-50-year wine. Only for true connoisseurs and those with patience! Tel. (707) 963-8339; Fax (707) 963-0232