Suggestions for an under-$50 Cal cab tasting?

WINE TALK
41

Volker Eisele - located in the Chiles area of eastern napa. Semi mountain area, tasty Bordeaux blends. Its a real outlier, regionally and flavor profile. Search shows some stock in nyc.

Saunter Swagger - Saunter’s blend of thier 2 SVD wines. Great value to get some Howell mtn fruit.

Robery Craig Affinity - similar to Swagger, good mountain fruit.

Shelter - I’ve been noticing a bunch of these Bob Foley side project wines hitting dealers all over. The Butcher and the 27-29 cab are purportedly sourced from good plots but tits all hush hush. One drinks like a valley floor cab, the other a mountain cab for sure.

42

Uppercut is actually good wine for well under $50. Conn Valley makes an under $50 wine I think.

43

The '14 is running around $75 in these parts.

44

WineSearcher Pro shows 30+ retailers selling recent vintages of Round Pond Estate cab for $50 or less. And that’s counting the 30+ listings for Total Wine as one retailer.

45

This thread reminds me that I need to buy in the mid-range more often. I have too many $10-$20 daily drinkers and too many too-young/special occasion wines aging away in the locker.

46

Kathryn Kennedy Small Lot SCM

47

Excellent suggestions but some are a little hot IMHO. Here is my list:

  1. Congruence-(I just re-stocked… Thanks Steve!)
  2. Roger Craig Affinit
  3. Seavey Caravina
  4. Provenance ‘Rutherford’ Cab.
  5. Textbook Cab-Give this a try with a retail price in the $20’s
48

Chappellet mountain cuvée is well south of $50.
A really nice wine too!

49

It’s under $25. How does it stack up against the others at twice that price?

50

I know others like it, but I’ve never been a big fan of the Mountain Cuvée. For the price, I’d rather have the Textbook cab that Albert referred to.

51

The 2014 drank or is drinking much better than the 2015. The 2015 needs some time side ways. I have a couple of bottles that I am going to wait on at least a year or two.

52

Is not Mountain Cuvee a blend that doesn’t fit here?

I’d vote for Honig and Smith Madrone, myself.

53

I agree with you Andrew. I’d take the Textbook any day and save a few bucks. Y

54

Mount Veeder Winery
Textbook Napa
Hollis
Mondavi Napa and Oakville
Educated Guess
Herb Lamb Two Old Dogs

55

+1 on Round Pond, and Wine-Searcher indicates that it might even be available in NY State for just shy of $50.

Not from California, but Powers Champoux Reserve is exactly the kind of wine you’re looking for [and their Champoux Red Blend is an even better wine].

[u]**http://www.badgermtnvineyard.com/powers/powers_wines.html**[/u]

56

Some nice suggestions so far. We just bottled our 3rd vintage, so the track record isn’t very long, but based on the OP’s criteria, I’d put our Band of Vintners project at $40 comfortably in this mix. Our goal from the beginning has been to overachieve the price point.

*Usual disclaimer about being ITB and associated with the wine, etc.

57

I second this.

58

I like KK very much but its been over $100 for a while and these days they call list $220 a bottle. Never seen it sell for that much. $125 is more common.

very much like the McCarthy Estate 2010 and 2012. Prefer the funk on the 2010. Can be found only around San Jose (Joseph George) or Los Gatos (Rootstock). Jeff Patterson of Mt Eden is the wine maker this wine is yummy. well worth the $45 tariff. Much more in style like older KK than say the 2012 KK.

Domaine Eden which also uses some McCarthy Estate fruit is another favorite.

Sean

59

Neal Family - the basic cab is generally fairly structured solid fruit, not over the top at all. Howell Mountain (mostly).

Whitehall Lane - you might be surprised. They have done some good things
St. Clement -
Pine Ridge

I’d throw in a Cameron Hughes ringer as a wildcard.

60

Good call on Neal Family!!