Lol
if you called the winery would they tell you if all the grapes went in this Cab?
I wouldn’t hold it past ten years expecting any improvement.
I have to give big thanks to AG. I like Clos Du Val and when we were in Costco today it was a great excuse to throw some in the cart “Hey 95 points! Only $22.99!”
My Costco only has the 12’ out.
I drank a 1978 G. Mascarello Villero Barolo last night with Antonio Galloni. We both really liked it.
Obviously he has a great palate.
I drank a 1971 Bruno Giacosa Barbaresco Santo Stefano Riserva Speciale and a 1990 Le Pergole Torte Riserva several nights ago with Cristi Dezso. We both really liked them.
Obviously, he has a great palate. 
So when we say back up the truck ![[wow.gif]](/uploads/db3686/original/2X/7/7d450e9830889c8943b674446a21b7254cad657e.gif "wow"){kind=small}
what do you really mean If my Costco ever gets it I might go for a 6-pack at most, probably more like 4 
When I hear “tons” of wood and vanilla, as they say on Shark Tank, I’m out. More for the rest of you. To be frank I am surprised this score is generating so much interest, even at the low price. Given the high volume of production I just don’t see this as an “investment” wine and so it’s really all about your drinking pleasure in terms of a buying decision. Most on this board don’t seem to care what one other taster thinks of the wine, even if he loved it, so it’s a little surprising.
Was always surprised that CdV held back their house style with the surge in high end/octane cabs coming out of Napa over the last 10-15 years. They always seemed so sensical in an old world kind of way and has always been a go to wine for me when in a pinch - like at a high end steak restaurant that has a list full of BIG cabs.
Of course this will be a monetary boosting decision for them but as far as I am concerned another one bites the dust in Napa and that doesn’t leave too many left.
Tom, how sure are you that the style has changed that much? 2013 is very young for a Napa cabernet, and while Robert noted the oak signature on the nose, he did say “Definitely more of a classic style than spoof here.”
Maybe it’s just a wine that needs some years to come together? Don’t most people who drink Clos du Val let them age for a number of years?
I haven’t tried this wine, and I’ve only has Clos du Val a few times in my life, so I’m not saying I know what is the case with this wine, but I just wonder if we should rush to judgment that they’re now just another Caymus or something.
One guy’s “tons,” could be another’s “balanced.” I will get up to Costco soon and grab a couple just to see. Personally, I was drinking CdV 7 years ago as the go-to $22 cab. But then I stopped drinking cab altogether and right now couldn’t care less about this wine. BUT, 95 points for 22 bucks of Napa cabernet is enough of a rarity (in my memory) that I’ll make sure I have enough on hand for every person who visits for dinner and says, “hey, you’re a wine guy, do you have that sold out 95 point wine from napa that I read about in the sunday paper?”
I should really fly up there today and pop and pour in the parking lot. I was at Corison and Alpha Omega over the weekend, so my palate is probably more tuned in for this wine than it will be again in the foreseeable future.
Outpost #471 had both the 12 and 13 out, but the 13’s have been mostly cleaned out so far by shoppers this wknd.
They may have more in stock but didn’t seem to be on the shelves yet.
I couldn’t resist and bought a 2013 to try.
I opened it this evening. It is somewhat more in the old CdV style than a more modern “spoofy” CA Cabernet, with perhaps more oak than I recall for the older CdV Cabs. Two things in particular that I noticed: (1) rather tart midpalate acidity, and (2) LOTS of fine but very drying tannins that come rushing in. It needs time in the cellar–at least 3-5 years–to tame the currently obtrusive tannins. It may in fact age into something quite nice, but this isn’t an especially enjoyable Cabernet right now. I’ll try it over the course of another night or two to see if extended aeration in the fridge makes a difference. While one can always debate points, there is no way I would score this a 95 at this point in time.
Bruce
Bruce, it seems to me that the discussion by those who follow Clos du Val and know its wines, as well as those, like yourself, who are tasting the wine in question and reporting back, are the real story here. There are no surprises to be had in Galloni scores, nor anything to be learned from Galloni tasting notes, which are the equivalent of waterboarding the English language. For wines that matter, Galloni employs an 11-point scale, 90-100 (dominated by the 95-100 end of the scale), with the rare 89 popping up to punish the occasional wine and manufacture an opportunity to crow about what a tough, transparent, tell-it-like-it-is dude he is. He is also 100% style-agnostic. That is what the retailer base that wine reviewers serve demand these days…
I don’t read enough of his reviews to form an opinion. But it’s part of the more general problem these days with reviews and scores. After all, if you consider a score in the 90’s to be an “A,” and a score in the 80’s to be a “B,” then an 89 is actually a “B+.” In other words, an 89 on a true scale should be a very nice wine. But in the market these days, an 89 can be the kiss of death. Even a 90 or 91 usually causes the collective wine market to go “eh” and shrug its shoulders.
If I’m forced to use scores on a 100 point scale, 95 points is my equivalent of a strong “wow” and probably a “wow plus.” There has to be some amazing depth of fruit and complexity, along with CURRENT balance. Right now, this wine comes across as a bit unbalanced, and it doesn’t currently have the complexity to merit a “wow.” We’ll see if the wine changes much overnight, but there is no way I would score this as a 95 point wine if I’m forced to use the 100 point scale.
Bruce
Hi there - my name’s Steve Tamburelli and in full disclosure I’m the president at Clos Du Val. This thread was just brought to my attention, so forgive me for not weighing in sooner. I’m excited to see such a lively discussion about Mr. Galloni’s recent scores of our wines. Before I tell you a bit about what’s been going on here at Clos Du Val over the past few years, let me address two concerns that have been brought up in this thread. First, I give you my word that the wines that Mr. Galloni tasted are the wines we will be selling in the market. As for the possibility that Mr. Galloni mixed up his notes somehow, I can’t speak to that, but it’s very unlikely that he would do so for both our 2013 and 2014 vintage.
As a wine lover, I can understand the doubters. Established wineries are a little like big ships, they don’t generally change course quickly or easily—but they certainly can change course. Some of you may know me from my time at Chappellet, where I spent over a decade, including six as general manager. In fact, I’ve been joined at Clos Du Val by Jon-Mark Chappellet, who established himself as a master at growing Cabernet during his two decades at Chappellet. Jon-Mark is our director of operations, overseeing our estate vineyard and winemaking program. Both of us came here because we were given the opportunity, and the authority, to write an exciting new chapter in the Clos Du Val story.
Beginning several years ago, we began a stylistic shift in our wines to a more vibrant and fruit-driven style. While our wines still have the complexity and elegance that first helped to catapult our Stags Leap District Cabernets to fame, today our wines are more balanced and inviting. This is not any kind of complete 180. While our aim is to show the natural strengths of our vineyards, we are doing it in a way that still honors our roots. While our wines are richer and more textural than in the past, they still have lovely acid and relatively modest alcohol levels of around 14%.
We have also made a number of other big changes. Beginning in 2014, we began focusing almost exclusively on making estate-grown wines from our three estate vineyards in Stags Leap District, Yountville and Carneros (totally 350 acres, and some of the best winegrowing land in Napa Valley). To make this happen, we cut our Cabernet production almost in half—even though we were selling out our wines each vintage. We also completely renovated our winery, lowered yields in our vineyards, and streamlined our portfolio, eliminating almost all wines not sourced exclusively from our own estates. Because of all of this, and more, we think we are making the best wines in our history.
Ultimately, the truth is in the bottle. With this in mind, if some of the individuals on this thread are local, and you want to arrange a date amongst yourselves, Jon-Mark and I would love to personally host you at Clos Du Val for a private advance tasting of our 2013 and 2014 Cabernets. I hope that you’ll take me up on this offer. I think you’ll like what you discover.
Thanks for the contribution to the discussion, Steve. I picked up a bottle of the 2013 today and will post a note in this thread in the coming days.
Mayacamas is another interesting one to watch. I love Mayacamas, and I would hate for it to become the next Caymus, but that’s not the same thing as saying there isn’t room to improve it either. It was often quite rustic and uneven; I’m interested to see if the new owners can make a better wine that is still a long-aging, classic, balanced Napa cabernet. It remains to be seen, but I don’t assume that trying to improve it means it will become generic or become over the top.
Thanks for the post Steve, very interesting. The words “fruit driven” are a bit loaded, but if you are working towards a style similar to Chappellet, I see that as a positive move. I found CdV wines good, but sometimes I admit to finding them a little thin, at least early on in their evolution. In my mind Chappellet has always maintained a nice balance in their wines between fruit, alcohol and acid. I’m especially a fan of the Signature cab, although I would never turn down a Prichard Hill. Good luck to you.
Thanks Chris - ‘over the top’ certainly isn’t our target. Crafting consistently delicious Cabernets that are reflective of our great Stags Leap vineyards is where we’re heading. Hope to see you at the winery sometime!