Don's Gillette's Wine Blog
Musings from our store's resident wine guru
Don has over thirty years experience in the wine industry. For the last eighteen years his attention has been focused on the growing local industry. Don has a large following of customers who search out his opinions (never in short supply!) on new releases and on what's currently most distinctive on our shelves. Others seek his insights on wineries and trends that are still under the radar. Read Don's full bio...
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Standing with the Tall Trees
I have attended three major wine showcases in the last two weeks, with Cabernet Sauvignon the main theme at two. The First was the annual Oakville Growers trade tasting. This year, it was held at Robert Mondavi winery in Napa Valley. Each year, it is the Cabernet lover's most sought-after ticket. The wines here can reach toward the heavens.
This year's event was a coming-out party for the very fine 2006 vintage, the success of which I found gratifying. 2006 was a year in which Napa Cabernet fermentations were typically prolonged. That resulted in dumb barrel samples which were nearly impossible to evaluate early on. The samples did not lack concentration or structure, but were blurry, awkward and confusing. I have watched this ugly duckling and told anyone who would listen that it would eventually become a Swan, yet the wines have remained stubbornly tight until just recently, and many still need extended airing to fully reveal themselves.
The Growers venue makes for a wonderful vintage-release showcase, as so many great independent producers are located in Oakville. Large corporate wineries (and their heavy-tonnage crops) are much in the minority here, so the event is a nearly ideal place to judge the high-end potential of a new crop. This is also a tasting where one can try cult wines that will reach shelves at $300.00 to 1200.00 per bottle, alongside multiple bottlings of similar quality that sell for under $75.00.
The 2006s were very impressive, not just for structure and mouth-feel, but for clarity, intensity and charm. A few were just emerging from their shell, while others were full-blown wonderful. Some gorgeous late-release 2005s were also poured. A list of my "first tier" Oakville Growers Cabs, in alphabetical order, would include:
2006 Ghost Block Estate
2005 Harlan Estate
2006 Hoopes Estate
2006 Liparita
2005 Paradigm Estate
2005 Phelps Backus Vineyard
2006 Screaming Eagle Esate
2006 Stanton Estate
2006 Tierra Roja Estate
The first tier wines were uniformly impressive and forthcoming. Those in boldface are current releases, and each is under $75.00 per bottle! All my "second tier" wines were clearly successful, yet less forthcoming. Time will tell whether they are a lesser breed or just late bloomers. Here is that alphabetical list:
2005 Bond St Eden Vineyard
2005 Bond Vecina Vineyard
2006 De Sante Terraces
2006 Far Niente Oakville
2006 Futo Estate
2005 Kelleher Brix Vineyard
2005 Robert Mondavi Oakville
Unfortunately, I arrived too late to the Dalla Valle table and managed to accidentally pass by Nickel & Nickel.
Next week: The Califronia Cabernet Society tasting and the 2008 Vintage.