Cali Cab sans Napa
California cabernet from outside of Napa is surely seeing its time come lately. Its not only usually cheaper, and easier to get a hold of, many really pack a punch and deliver wines that can be both powerful and complex. And they leave a little in the wallet for dinner. Here’s a couple of wine I’ve tried that will satisfy your cab cravings
2002 Forth Cabernet Sauvignon Dry Creek Sonoma
This wine is brooding with big purple, black colors and a violet tinge around the edge. Slow drawn legs on this wine hint at the alcohol level which is around 14.7. This is a nice meaty wine from Sonoma. The wine seems to run a little hot at the outset. Nose has plums and green peppers with a little bit of asparagus as well. Definitely on the hot side taste wise. It does have all of the body and weight of a heavy hitter from Napa – the plums and blackberries, along with green peppers and tobacco are the first things I notice. A nice bit of tannins under the fruit help drive to a very dry finish – but now I can’t get over the heat coming off this wine. It started out very, very nice, and now has gone a little bit dull by hour 2. Tobacco and a hint of mocha seem the prevalent notes here, though there is definitely a vegetal quality to this wine. Not a bad wine by any means, and for the price, around 25 bucks, this still stacks up nicely with some of the Napa wines that would be close to 40 dollars. By hour 3, the wine is starting to smooth out and I’m getting some raspberries peaking through. There’s also not a ton of oak, and the wine shows some nice chocolate-covered cherries. After a good 3hrs, this wine is really showing nicely. Lesson shows that this needs some decanting – probably a good hour or two before serving.
My Rating: 91-92pts
2004 Ridge Santa Cruz Mountains Bordeaux Blend
This was a nice fruit-driven wine displaying a good blend with cherries and chocolate. There were also notes of tobacco and dirt mixed in too. The tannins were integrated and not showing too much through the finish. The wine had a decent finish and some nice complexity. Overall not a great wine but it still delivered. Priced around $35.
Rating: 89pts
No Comments to “Cali Cab sans Napa”