1991 Silver Oak Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley
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Tasting notes
The 1994 Cabernet Sauvignon Napa (89% Cabernet Sauvignon and 11% Cabernet Franc) reveals toasty sweet oak in the nose, bombastic levels of black currant fruit and spice along with a hint of mint in the background. Supple and full-bodied, with delirious levels of cedar and unctuously-textured fruit, this fleshy, gorgeously made Cabernet Sauvignon should drink well for 14-15 years. The Napa offerings from Silver Oak tend to be less herbaceous and more oriented toward Cabernet Sauvignon's black fruit spectrum than the Alexander Valley cuvees. They are every bit as exotic and ostentatious as the Alexander Valley cuvees, but more classic, tannic, perhaps longer-lived, and slightly less approachable. Silver Oak wines are supple, explosively fruity, and deliver copious quantities of glycerin, extract, and richness wrapped in generous quantities of American oak. Critics have argued that the wine does not age particularly well, but that has largely been proven a myth. (RP)
Critic scores
Robert Parker
The Wine Advocate
More reviews and scores
In my October tasting both 1993 Cabernets were more tannic and closed than the 1992s. The 1993 Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley is one of the more tannic and backward wines I have tasted from Silver Oak. Now that it has been bottled, it has closed down, displaying far less lushness and obvious concentration than it did last year. The color remains a healthy dark ruby/purple, and the nose offers earthy, toasty new oak, and sweet black fruit aromas. Tight, yet powerful and rich, this full-bodied, dense, atypically backward Cabernet Sauvignon does not possess Silver Oak's usual approachability and precociousness. Nevertheless, this wine has plenty of merit. (RP)
This superb Cabernet producer has finally released its splendid 1991s. The compelling 1991 Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley exhibits more classic cassis notes without the subtle herbaceousness of the Alexander Valley wine. It is a multi-layered, fabulously rich, intense wine with full body, a velvety texture, and oodles of fruit, glycerin, and soft tannin in the finish. Both wines are already delicious, and will age gracefully for 12-15 years. Tel. (707) 944-8808