TN: California cabs <$50 and <15%

My monthly blind tasting group did current-release California cabernets this week. There were two criteria: They had to be under ~$50 and under 15% alcohol. Thanks to all the Berserkers who made suggestions for wines to include.

All but one of the wines (Ramey) was from 2014. Six were from Napa, and two from the cooler Santa Cruz Mountains (Ridge and Domaine Eden). Two of the Napas (Smith-Madrone and Mt. Veeder) are from vineyards at higher elevations, where it is generally cooler.

• The wines all tasted like cabernet – a rare thing these days when so much fruit is picked so ripe that you can’t tell if it’s cab or zin or syrah or petite syrah.

• The oak wasn’t conspicuous on any of these.

• There were enough leftovers that I was able to retaste the (refrigerated) leftovers the next day and two days later (and even some three days later). Several improved, a few went downhill a little.

• Because my scores fluctuated over those three days, I’ve put the wines in bands rather than given them hard numbers. We had only six people at the tasting, so the group scores were too tightly clustered to mean much.

• The Smith-Madrone was the outlier, with its less ripe profile. The Mondavi and Groth seemed a bit too polished, a bit more commercial.

• Someone made an interesting observation that all of these producers except Ramey bought vineyards back in the 1970s or earlier.

• The wines were decanted into pouring bottles an hour ahead of the tasting and were consumed over an hour or more. As usual in this group, we had a list of the wines but didn’t know which was which.

  • The asterisked wines are the possible buys for me.

Top tier (91-93 points) (not particular order within each group)

*** 2014 Smith Madrone – Spring Mountain, Napa Valley** (estate grown)(13.9%)
Not for the pyrazine faint of heart: Green pepper on the nose and in the mouth on day 1, with higher acid than the others – a profile that stood out in this group. This was clearly from less ripe, higher elevation fruit, but it’s a really nice wine and one I’m considering buying. And it improved on days 2 and 3, taking on flesh and becoming fruitier, though the green strand remained. The finish, which had been fairly tannic on day 2, took on a sweetness at the back after two days.

*** 2014 Mount Veeder Vineyard – Napa Valley** (14.5%)
This seemed to have some American oak on the nose, but it wasn’t overpowering. A bit fruitier than some others. I marked it down a touch on day 1 because I picked up a slight porty note in the fruit, but that went away after a day, and this got better and better, even on day 3. Good grip, but the tannins seem very fine.

*** 2014 Domaine Eden – Santa Cruz Mountains** (14%) My favorite and the group’s second place. Slight reduction, and the nose was tight at first. Great grip, with lots of tannins, but it slowly fleshes out with air. There is oodles of concentration without being overextracted. Slightly higher acid than most, though not as much as the Smith-Madrone.

2014 Clos du Val - Estate Napa Valley (14.1%)
Dark, dense and tannic, but beautifully balanced with excellent dark chocolate hints and dark berry fruit. Classic Napa cab that needs some time to soften up. I felt this faded a little on days 2 and 3, so I’d buy the others before this based on that.

Middle tier (88-90 points)

Both of these were disappointing relative to expectations on day 1 but improved.

2013 Ramey - Napa Valley (14.5%)
A touch of heat showed at first. It was tight and a bit anonymous. On day 2, it started to show more chocolate, still with a little heat. On day 3 it came together much better, again with nice chocolate and dark berries – like the vinuous form of the Lindt blackberry-dark chocolate bar I have in the refrigerator at the moment. I went from 82 at the time of the tasting to 89+ on day 3. I think this needs time to show its best.

2014 Ridge Vineyards Estate (Santa Cruz Mountains) (13.7%)
Nice perfume, though the 100% American oak didn’t really pop out, even though we have some keen noses for American oak in the group. Very dense, ripe and rich, but balanced, with a light acid streak in the palate and finish. Not hot. The tannins seemed to come and go on this; at times seeming course, at times seeming soft. A bit more acid than some, and faint green note showed on day 3. I went from 87 down to 84 then up to 88 on this.

Bottom tier (83-85 points)
2014 Robert Mondavi – Oakville (14.5% on label; 15% per website)
Some heat showed here out of the gate. There’s a good tannic and acid grip, but the wine seemed a bit generic compared to most. On day 2, I wrote: “Grip, balanced, monochromatic, generic.” There was some heat on the finish. I gave it 83 points.

2014 Groth – Oakville (14.5%)
Sweet blackberries on the nose, the only wine to show that profile. Nice ripe fruit, softish tannins. Approachable, sweet. “Yum!” I wrote, but yummy in a slightly obvious way. This would be a crowd-pleaser. Not challenging. Got better in the glass on day 1, but on day 2 it seemed too sweet and facile. I went from 88 to 85 on this.

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One member generously brought a '99 Smith-Madrone, which we drank after the main tasting. That green profile was there, but it was a beautiful wine. Dense, chewy and tannnic. He decanted and served it immediately. Several of us could see the parallel to the '14. The wine really needed air to show its best. One friend hung around for an hour or so and we finished off the balance. It fleshed out and became fruitier, though there’s still a firm backbone of tannins there. Some people would find this underripe, but we loved it.

That’s a great note!

I can relate to each description, really well done.

Are you a touch NFWE?

Here is some background info on the wines. Prices are in the NYC area.

2014 Smith Madrone – Spring Mountain, Napa Valley (estate grown) (13.9%) $45
100% estate fruit from Spring Mountain (1,800-foot elevation). 42-year-old dry-farmed vines. 85% cabernet sauvignon, 8% cab franc, 7% merlot. 18 months in oak: 70% new French oak, 30% one-year-old French oak.
94 points from Decanter. The website lists scads of reviews, but none from Wine Advocate, Wine Spectator or Vinous. [cheers.gif]

2014 Mount Veeder Vineyard – Napa Valley (14.5%) $39
This appears to be entirely from estate fruit grown on Mt. Veeder at elevations of 1,000-1,600 feet, though that’s not stated explicitly. The 2015 is a blend of 84% cabernet sauvignon, 12% merlot, 2% petit verdot and 2% Malbec. Presumably the 2014 was similar. The wine evidently sells for $30 or less in California.
No critics’ scores that I could find.

2014 Domaine Eden – Santa Cruz Mountains (14%) $40
Neither the label nor the winery’s website says this is estate fruit, but I believe I believe it’s the lots that don’t go into the Mount Eden cabernets. 75% cabernet sauvignon, 14% merlot, 6% cab franc, 4% petit verdot and 1% malbec. Available for $35 elsewhere in the NYC area.
No critics’ scores.

2014 Clos du Val - Estate Napa Valley (14.1%) $44
The winery cut cabernet production in half a couple of years ago to increase quality and now uses fruit only from its own vineyards. It owns 100 acres in the prime Stag’s Leap AVA. The label does not refer to Stag’s Leap, though, so part of this may come from vines in Yountville, a little south of Oakville. In the past, their base Napa bottling sold for ~$24.
91-94 points from Galloni/Vinous; 89 points from Jeff Leve/Wine Cellar Insider

2013 Ramey - Napa Valley (14.5%) $50
The only ’13 in the tasting. Aged 18 months in 56% new barrels (three-year air dried French and American). A blend of valley and hillside vineyards: 30% St. Helena, 29% Napa Valley, 15% Oak Knoll, 12% Napa-Carneros, 6% Mt. Veeder, 5% Diamond Mountain, 3% Oakville. Grapes: 80% cabernet sauvignon, 11% merlot, 6% malbec, 3% petit verdot.
92 points from Galloni

2014 Ridge Vineyards Estate (Santa Cruz Mountains) (13.7%) ~$43
From the Monte Bello vineyard. 75% cabernet sauvignon, 14% merlot, 6% petit verdot, 5% cab franc. 19 months in American oak, 70% new. Some acid reduction on a few lots and water added on others.
93 points from Galloni/Vinous.
(Amusing footnote: Ridge’s website carries Galloni’s review, where he says the wine spends 27 months in French oak. [scratch.gif] )

2014 Robert Mondavi – Oakville (14.5% on label; 15% per website) $44
98% from the famous To Kalon vineyard. 88% cabernet sauvignon, 5% cab franc, 3% malbec, 3% petit verdot, 1% merlot.
_91+ points from Parke_r

2014 Groth – Oakville (14.5%) $54
Winery’s description: “Big and lush with huge gobs of fruit in the aroma and flavor…. The sweet vanilla character derived from 22 months in the [French] barrels blends well with the black cherry and blackberry flavors.” Store description: “Massive black cherry pie filling, cola, and vanilla custard on the nose.”
It appears this is mostly or all estate fruit. Since replanting with new clones and rootstocks in the 1990s, alcohols are up from 13-13.5% to over 14.5% now. 80% cabernet sauvignon, 20% merlot.
I couldn’t find any scores.

Neo-flavor wine elite?

No f*%#ing way, E____?

What happened to the Louis Martini? I thought you liked that best or did I misread?

Maybe it’s AFWE.

D’oh!

Anyway, your notes rang true for me.

? Haven’t had one of their wines in maybe 20 years.

The Domaine Eden is really wonderful, open knit, light on its feet, yet concentrated in flavor. I even get a bit of salty flavor.

John, I already drank my one bottle but do you see an upside with this wine?

Yep, the notes in your other thread were Mike Kuller’s not yours. I plead PC issues leading to berserking by phone

This week I wouldn’t describe it as being open knit. I wrote: "Tight [on the nose]. [On the palate:] "Tight … great grip… Seems more tannic on day 3. Higher acid. [On the finish:] “Great depth, tannic, balanced.”

Yes, I think there’s definitely upside. I plan to buy some and would probably hold off 7-10 years. But I tend to like some age on my wines.

The day 3 notes are interesting since I got to taste two of them! (Thanks again.)

I liked the relative elegance, transparency, redness, and precision of the Clos du Val. I thought it had a very interesting midpalate. I didn’t like the Ramey really at all. Blocky, woody - actually sort of boring to me.

Thanks for the follow up, John. How did your scoring compare to that of the other five tasters?

And by “scoring” I mean “opinions” not points.

Thanks for the notes. It would be interesting if the rank order would change if the wines were each 10 years old. I know that the wines I like best young and the ones that mature the best are often the same, but this is not always the case.

The person I usually correlate with best was pretty much in sync with me, though he liked Dom. Eden less and Mondavi more.

As I said above, though, the wines changed quite a bit, so I don’t give a lot of weight to my rankings or anyone else’s on day 1.

John, I’m curious as to your description of the Clos du Val and basing potential purchases off 2-3 days of being opened. On what basis do you make that decision since aeration and aging have little to no correlation? TIA

I score for what I think will ultimately be the best wine. If I’d based this on current drinking, the Groth might have been my #1 instead of #7.

Yes, I should address that.

I find that with serious, tannic young red wines, I often see more of the potential after they’ve been open a day or two (if refrigerated). It’s not at all the same as aging them, but I think some aromas and flavors emerge from very tight wines, which are sometimes the best bets for the long haul. As those emerge, you get a better sense of the real balance, which you sometimes can’t see with only a little air. Often wines that showed nothing or little on day 1, open up and you can see the depth and complexity a day or two later. And, conversely, very often wines that offered themselves up on day 1 seem less impressive after a day or two.

Luckily, as the host of this group, I get the leftovers. neener

Fantastic thread. I need to track down some Smith Madrone. Thanks, John!!

FYI to everyone else, Jayson came over on Thursday and got to taste some on day 3.

I liked the Clos du Val less with each day. The Mt. Veeder was Luciano Pavoratti tonight. I consider that a great omen that it held its own for four days.

The Ridge was tough going – very tart. I’m going to place my bets on the Mt. Veeder and the Smith-Madrone, in rather different styles.

Thanks for the thoughtful response John. I also find that some wines reveal some of their underlying complexity with time in the glass/bottle/decanter. Nevertheless, I think there is a very fine line one draws between tasting an opened young bottle as well as an older one and using that info to determine (e.g.) drinking windows.