2016 Rudius Cabernet Sauvignon Kaley Elizabeth
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Tasting notes
Coming from the Tierra Roja vineyard in Oakville and also spending 27 months in oak, the 2016 Cabernet Sauvignon Kaley Elizabeth (there’s 4% Cabernet Franc) offers a meaty, exotic bouquet of bloody blueberry fruits, gamey meats, iodine, blood orange, and violets. With full-bodied richness and depth, it’s flawlessly balanced, has fine tannins, and a seamless, sexy texture that keeps you coming back to the glass. In short, it’s another magical wine from winemaker Jeff Ames! Drink bottles over the coming 20-25 years or more.
Critic scores
Average Score
James Suckling
Jeb Dunnuck
More reviews and scores
The 2016 Cabernet Sauvignon Kaley Elizabeth, from Tierra Roja, Oakville, is a sumptuous, exotic wine. A dollop (7%) of Cabernet Franc adds a striking perfume that gives this wine notable aromatic depth to match its exotic, alluring personality. Chocolate, espresso, licorice, dried herbs, menthol all flesh out in this flamboyant, sumptuous Cabernet Sauvignon from Rudius. Silky tannins and plush fruit give the 2016 tons of immediacy and appeal, even at this early stage. This is such a gorgeous wine.
The 2016 Cabernet Sauvignon Kaley Elizabeth, blended with about 6% Cabernet Franc, has a deep garnet-purple color and opens with pronounced blackcurrant pastilles, baked blackberries and plum preserves notes with hints of sautéed herbs, damp soil, underbrush, espresso and licorice. Medium-bodied, the palate delivers loads of savory and baked black fruit layers with plenty of herbal sparks and a chewy frame, finishing long and savory.
Intense aromas of ripe berries and prunes with hints of spices and flowers. Full body and big, rich character. A little old-school. Drink now.