I was lucky to be invited to a recent vertical tasting of every Cab produced by Wolf Family Vineyards in St Helena last week. I have been a fan of this winery since before I moved to the Napa due to their consistency and their moderate pricing. Once I arrived here in 05, it was amazing how many times I accidentely walked into this estate while trouncing around St Helena. ![[oops.gif]](/uploads/db3686/original/2X/1/1f129ddad071ffe5db6c99817c3cab666035a70a.gif "oops"){kind=small}
The 30-acre estate with about 6+ planted, located in St Helena, is one of the 3 most beautiful wine estates I have been to in the valley, in my opinion. A 19th century Victorian sits on the property, as well as a sister Victorian built in the 50s. There are large gardens and lawns, plus 3 blocks of vines that produce Cab, Cab Franc and Sauv Blanc. The vineyard is bordered one one side by Flora Springs and on the other by Lewelling, sharing a similar alluvial soil to the latter. Vineyard manager Jim Barbour has his own vineyard below them on the same lane. The winemaker since the beginning is Karen Culler.
Some of the wine lineup…
Some munchies before the tasting. Wolf uses Graham Jones for their catering and having had his food twice, he does a great job.
Here are my notes for the Cabs. Note that these notes do not review their Cab Franc, well-known as one of the best of it’s kind around these parts, as some of you know. The wines were opened not long before being tasted with two exceptions. All were from 750s except for one wine, from magnum.
1999 Wolf Family Estate Cabernet, Napa Valley
The only one not 100% Cab, this had 9% Franc. Opaque-purple color. Medium-full body. Well-balanced, classical aromas of spicy currant with a few secondary nuances emerging. Still structured with drying tannins on the finish. A great way to start. Drink now and over the next 3-5 years.
94pts
2000 Wolf Family Estate Cabernet, Napa Valley
Translucent deep-ruby. Medium body. Cassis aromas with a moderate green streak that blew off after some time. Round, with less structure than the 99. Elegant. The fruit is holding on. Some guests liked this more than me. Drink over the next 3-4 years.
89pts
2001 Wolf Family Estate Cabernet, Napa Valley
Translucent deep-ruby that is starting to fade slightly. Very elegant aromas of red fruit. Medium-bodied and quite smooth in the mouth. Secondary aromas just starting to poke through. Excellent. A favorite of the crowd. Drink or Hold 2-3 more years.
93pts
2002 Wolf Family Estate Cabernet, Napa Valley
Opaque ruby-purple color. The edge of full-bodied. The largest of the first four wines and also seemed the most ripe, with a hint of stewed tomatos and red fruit. Not as smooth in the mouth as some other vintages, but this has some major stuffing. Might be a phase, but needs more time to resolve. I am finding that 2001s are aging better than 2002 in most cases. RMP gave this 96, so what do I know?
90+?pts
2003 Wolf Family Estate Cabernet, Napa Valley
Opaque purple-color. Medium-full body. Large mouthfeel with big black fruits and intense attack. From a very hot year. This was the first of the tasting that clearly needs time. Wait 3 years and try again. Has good potential.
92+pts
2004 Wolf Family Estate Cabernet, Napa Valley
Opaque purple color. Edge of full-bodied. Spicy black fruit aromas, excellent balance. Sexy and voluptuous mouthfeel with liqueur-like texture and good tannins on the finish. One of the best 04s I’ve had the last year or two. My notes said “Welcome to the jungle!” This is a wine that is hedonistic while retaining class. This will probably gain elegance in 3-4 years, or if you like the fruit, go for it now. My wine of the tasting.
95pts
2005 Wolf Family Estate Cabernet, Napa Valley
Translucent ruby-purple. Starting with this vintage, the color moves back to the red side from the purple that intervened from 2002-04. Medium-full body. Elegant red fruits in a softer texture but still with a tannic kick on the end. Very good wine but I wonder if the fruit will go before the tannin gets soft? Drink over the next 3-4 years.
91pts
2006 Wolf Family Estate Cabernet, Napa Valley
Translucent ruby-purple. Medium-full body. Shares the linear mouthfeel of almost all 06s. Lots of red cherries here. Tannins need to resolve a bit. Like the structure a lot. Give this 3-4 years and try again. I like what I taste here but a little more time might improve it.
91+pts
2007 Wolf Family Estate Cabernet, Napa Valley
Medium-full with deep ruby color. Well structured with juicy red fruits and a very soft texture. Quite round but with that tell-tale tannic kick on the finish. Quite ripe and juicy. Already drinkable, but this really needs 3+ years to hit it’s stride. Probably the crowds #2 wine of the day.
92pts
2008 Wolf Family Estate Cabernet, Napa Valley
A bit reticent initially, then it really began to gain steam at the end. Translucent deep ruby color with a medium-full body that a carries a nice structure, this has lots of room to grow. I actually liked it better than the 07. Give this 5 years.
93+pts
What I take away from this tasting is…
- Wolf does not always follow the vintage, so don’t be a slave to vintage reviews.
- The cabs are not as big as most from this area.
- Emphasis on red color and red fruit. I know there are many here who will be glad to hear this.
- In most cases you want to wait 5-7 years after the vintage to try them.
- With Karen there since the beginning, there is a good consistency in style here.
- One of Napa’s best Cabs under $100
Wolf is open for occasional tours, so if you are looking to visit a drop-dead gorgous property, with small production and under $100, you might do yourself a favor and try to set one up. This email address should do the trick… mkmarketing@comcast.net
To finish off, we had a few Wolf Cab Francs with our nice lunch. I did not take notes, but I was stunned to see that their colors, even on the old ones, exceeded the Cabs. These are really excellent Francs. I am curious to see what 5-10% in each Cab would do to their mouthfeel and longevity. The 1999 was awesome with it. Here is a pic…
