2016 Hightower Cellars Cabernet Sauvignon Red Mountain Reserve
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Tasting notes
Alas, the 2016 Red Mountain Reserve is a success. Blended of 75% Cabernet Sauvignon, 13% Malbec and 12% Cabernet Franc, it bursts from the glass with a dark-fruited core of aromas on the nose, balanced by a dusty elegance with spicy oak tones and a firm minerality. Full-bodied, the palate is rich, complex and precise, displaying a balanced and well-defined structure across the mid-palate before finishing long, with evolving flavors of mocha, black raspberry and subtle oak spices. This food-friendly wine will drink well beyond its 10th birthday. Well done. Now I’m craving steak. 193 cases were made.
Critic scores
Average Score
Stephen Tanzer, Vinous
Jeb Dunnuck
More reviews and scores
Lastly, the 2016 Red Mountain Reserve comes all from Red Mountain and is 75% Cabernet Sauvignon, 13% Malbec, and the rest Cabernet Franc. Brought up in a mix of cooperage (American, French, and European), its inky color is followed by lots of cassis and jammy black fruits interwoven with plenty of charcoal, vanilla, and dried earth aromas and flavors. Medium-bodied, nicely textured, and elegant on the palate, it does a great job taming those Red Mountain tannins. It’s going to evolve for 10-12 years, if not longer.
Bright ruby-red. Inviting, slightly gamey aromas of black fruits, cocoa powder and sexy oak. Concentrated and densely packed but not hard or tight; in fact, this Cabernet Sauvignon-based blend is surprisingly pliant and savory, conveying attractive Cab Franc lift to its flavors of dark fruits and dark chocolate. Finishes with spicy tannins, very good length and a note of red licorice. This pretty but distinctly firm-edged wine needs another couple years of cellaring to round out. I give these 2016 reds a distinct edge over the winery's '15s for their more consistent ripeness without any extremes. (14.2% alcohol)