2016 Betz Family Cabernet Sauvignon Heart of the Hill

The 2016 Cabernet Sauvignon Heart of the Hill is a pure, unblended Cabernet Sauvignon that displays underlying dark, dusty fruit on the nose, alongside subtle spice tones of sage, cinnamon and cardamom. Full-bodied and segueing from ripe and juicy to focused and softly tart on the palate, the wine evolves with layers of complexity, gradually revealing more depth and breadth across the mid-palate, ending with a long-lingering finish with finesse and complexity. This is an impressive wine that delivers pleasure and will continue to age beautifully in the cellar for years to come. Only 400 cases were made.

A smaller run of just 400 cases of this exceptional cabernet, which has such complexity and depth with intense aromas of dark cherries and blackcurrants, layered with toasty oak and spice. It has fragrance and freshness, too. The palate is so composed, so deeply flavored and so polished. The registration of tannin is faultless. This is so youthful, so dense and so full of promise. Great wine. Drink from 2024.

Bright medium ruby. Lively aromas of cassis, blackberry, licorice, menthol and minerals, lifted by suggestions of violet and black pepper. Densely packed, spicy and vibrant; a bit more pliant than the 2015 was last year, but still with firm underlying minerality and tannic spine. Quite backward and in need of time in bottle to soften and expand. Not quite as sweet as the Père de Famille Cabernet but very impressive considering the young age of these Kiona vineyard vines on Red Mountain. (I should note that I retasted the 2015 Heart of the Hill in July and raised my score to 92+ as well, as the wine is now showing more obvious minerality and sweetness and its tannins have become somewhat silkier.)