TN: 2 New Cornerstone Cabernets

WINE TALK
1

2006 Cornerstone Cellars Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon, 14.5% alc., SRP $65: Deeply, darkly colored, rich and refined, this beauty is ripe without going over the top, delivering pure, lovely blackberry and black currant flavors and aromas shaded with very well integrated oak, subtle earthy undertones and the vaguest hint of chocolate. Structured for several years of development and yet already quite approachable, it makes a real style statement and hits all the right notes for this taster. I enjoyed every sip, from start to finish. Sourced from Howell Mountain and Oakville; aged for two years in French oak followed by a year of bottle age.

2005 Cornerstone Cellars Howell Mountain Cabernet Sauvignon, 14.8% alc., SRP $100: With clean, deep dark color, this is even more elegant, refined and opulent than the ‘06 Napa bottling, with lovely, ripe blackberry, black currant and black cherry character graced with a subtle note of chocolate, a pretty kiss of well-integrated sweet oak and a little more earth underneath it all than the previous selection. Full bodied, yet sleek, very smooth, yet well structured, this drinks beautifully now, yet promises to age well for many years. Sourced from Cornerstone’s organically certified block high on Howell Mountain in the famed Ink Grade Vineyard; aged for two years in French oak barrels followed by two years of bottle age before release.

Could this be my bloody pulpit?: The oak in both of these beautiful Cabernets seems more restrained and in balance than with last year’s models, and while I was impressed with those last May, these are much more to my liking, and that’s coming from someone who tends to prefer more traditional, old world-styled wines. By way of contrast, Kim found these to show a little more oak than she cares for, but then, her tastes have gone even more old world than mine. I still enjoy wines from Napa when they’re well-made, and these two are very well-made indeed. I’d recommend them to anyone with New World palates still playing in the high-end wine market.

- from 4 New Wines from Cornerstone Cellars

Reporting from Day-twah,

geo t.

2

Great wines, great people, great notes. Thanks for posting.

From March this year:
2005 Cornerstone Cabernet Sauvignon Howell Mountain – Much darker than the Napa, no surprise. Less approachable and more densely packed, no surprise. Still a great wine to have in the cellar in about 2-4 years. 91/100

3

Thanks Mike. Sounds like this one’s come around some since March, but you’re right, it’ll like some time in the cellar.

Cheers,

geo

4

Doesn’t Celia Welch (Scarecrow, Corra) make these now? I seem to remember having them with her there somewhere.

5

Roy, Jeff Keene is winemaker at Cornerstone Cellars.

Cheers,

geo

6

Jeez, I hope not.

7

She was involved as the consulting winemaker until Jeff was hired on full time.

8

Who is Jeff Keene and what is his background?

9

Thanks for the nice notes George. Jeff Keene is a veteran of 11 Napa Valley vintages. He is a former associate winemaker with Peter Franus Consulting and was the head winemaker at Havens before it was sold several years ago. He is a native of New Zealand where he was a research chemist before returning to university to get his degree in enology. I have also retained Peter Franus as our consulting enologist. Jeff, Peter and I are finalizing the blend on our 2008’s now and this is the team that is making the 2009 Cornerstone wines and all Stepping Stone wines from the 2007 vintage on.

Celia Welch was the consulting winemaker on these two cabernets, but due to the increasing demands of her own label we both felt a full time winemaker was the best way to build on the work that Celia had started at Cornerstone.