1993 Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley

The 1993 Cabernet Sauvignon has developed well. It is performing far stronger than it did when I first tasted it a year ago. The wine possesses a dark saturated purple color, a sweet, truffle, cassis-scented nose, and dense, powerful, full-bodied flavors with considerable glycerin, extract, and tannin. It reveals more sweetness of fruit, as well as a more expansive, chewy texture than it displayed immediately after bottling. For the 1993 vintage, this is a top-notch effort. Anticipated maturity: 2000-2020. This winery is making Cabernet Sauvignon that offers a high quality/price rapport. Most wines of this complexity, character, and richness cost $40 or more a bottle. The $28 price fetched by the 1993 looks very fair in today's market. This well-located estate in the charming, pastoral Conn Valley (the foothills east of St. Helena) is owned by the Seavey family. Just over 35 acres of vines are planted on the slopes, with the bulk of the production sold to Kendall-Jackson. Enough fruit is retained to estate bottle 1,200 cases. This is an underrated, somewhat unknown source of terrific Cabernet Sauvignon. The 1990 and 1991 Cabernet Sauvignons (now sold out) are magnificent. I once kept a decanted bottle of the 1991 for four days, admiring how it resisted any oxidation. Moreover, it developed additional richness and complexity each day. The newer efforts, particularly the exceptional 1993, very fine 1994, and what appears to be another memorable effort in 1995, all merit attention. These are intensely flavored wines, aged in small French oak barrels coopered by such well-known French firms as Taransaud and Seguin-Moreau. A relatively good pear/pineapple-scented and flavored Chardonnay is produced, and in 1994, a very good Merlot was added to the winery's small portfolio. Tel. and Fax (707) 963-8339