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| Drinking Windows and Values |
| Community Tasting History |
| Community Tasting Notes (average 92 pts. and median of 92 pts. in 75 notes) - hiding notes with no text | | | Tasted by louisl on 3/5/2024 & rated 92 points: Nice lush dark fruit and mouthfeel, but very one dimensional. I’d expect more complexity's at this price. Drinking well but could go another 3 years. (168 views) | | | Tasted by jlgnml on 9/16/2023 & rated 94 points: Out of magnum. Really good lace. Deep color and fruit. Some tannins but still too young. (306 views) | | | Tasted by Mark V on 12/31/2022 flawed bottle: Cork was so dry it adhered to the side of the bottle and disentgrated when opening. No nose or flavor, well past it’s prime as one of the best wines I’ve ever tasted previously. Huge disappointment. (459 views) | | | Tasted by cucycling on 6/20/2022 & rated 92 points: It’s been seven years since enjoying my first bottle of this wine. Very much a stag‘s Leap Wine. Rich smooth and very full bodied, but left me sad that I only had two bottles. (661 views) | | | Tasted by handyb on 6/7/2022 & rated 75 points: Overpriced and forced to buy from my wine subscription to Clif Lede. I feel it is unfair and in bad faith for a winery to make you buy a mediocre 150 bottle of wine. (593 views) | | | Tasted by SonnyChiba on 10/21/2021 & rated 92 points: 91-92pts. This was quite good, has aged gracefully and in a good drinking window. (959 views) | | | Tasted by Caligrrl on 1/2/2021 & rated 92 points: Still good, initially tannins, then chocolate & cinnamon, some of the bright fruits were more muted, but still delicious. (1040 views) | | | Tasted by iamandyc on 11/26/2020 flawed bottle: No rating as this bottle was mildly corked. The good stuff was there underneath but muted and metallic. (990 views) | | | Tasted by knlowery on 11/8/2020 & rated 93 points: Great popnpour and excellent nose (a bit of earthiness at this point) but great complex fruit on the front and mid pallet (821 views) | | | Tasted by wconnolly on 8/2/2020 & rated 90 points: Love the Rock Block wines and this was no exception. Medium ruby color. Bright red raspberry, cherry, a hint of smoke and just a touch of oak. The overwhelming characteristic for me is the bright, fresh fruit. This was from a magnum but I would not wait much longer to drink. Tannins were silky and nicely integrated. I don’t think this will improve much. My opinion is that Rock Block wines are made to consume early. (882 views) | | | Tasted by rmcnees on 3/7/2020 & rated 92 points: This was dark garnet colored medium-full bodied with black berry fruits accented by notes of cassis, spice and earth tones.
https://unwindwine.blogspot.com/2020/03/otbn-2002.html (930 views) | | | Tasted by wconnolly on 2/29/2020 & rated 92 points: Another contribution to OTBN along with an ‘06 Diamond Creek Red Rock Terrace. Very different from the RRT but delicious in its own way, Medium to dark garnet in color. Nose contains mostly floral notes with a hint of earthiness. Bright, jammy, red raspberry and blackberry up front; a bit of sharpness that I have come to expect from Stags Leap along with a bigger mouthfeel on the mid palate; a long, warm, oaky finish with grippy tannins. (576 views) | | | Tasted by Rollerball on 7/21/2019 & rated 93 points: From mag. The maybe-too-intense attack quickly gives way to a warm dark ganache that drips liquorly down you tongue. This embraces you, puts its arm in your elbow, and offers holiday-level cheer. Happiness in a bottle. (986 views) | | | Tasted by wconnolly on 12/25/2018 & rated 90 points: Deep indigo color. Dark, black fruit with touches of cinnamon, clove and pencil lead on the palate. Plenty of tannins suggesting this will last and improve over the next three to five years. (1134 views) | | | Tasted by ONEFIVE on 12/22/2018: Garnet edge, blood red core.
Notes of baking spice, concentrated black fruit, kirsch, graphite and a touch of leather.
Silky texture, soft, yet prevalent tannins, and moderate acidity frame this wine.
We opened this a couple hours before consuming and it tasted great the whole time.
Plenty of life left, at least a decade. (811 views) | | | Tasted by iamandyc on 9/2/2018 & rated 93 points: Big wine that went from black and blue fruit to redder fruit with air. Licorice, cedar and cigar on the finish. Juicy wine but pretty balanced. Good with food or as a sipper. (1149 views) | | | Tasted by Mark V on 8/18/2018 & rated 97 points: The best Stags Leap cab ever with the best nose of any wine. Cliff Lede should have captured the nose and made perfume. Palette reveals great blend of tannins and dark cherry and berry CS fruit blended well with the mineral geology of this area. Haven’t found a better Cliff Lede wine since, but it won’t stop me from looking! (1127 views) | | | Tasted by Knaackj on 11/26/2017 & rated 91 points: Very good Stag’s Leap, with classic color, muted nose, and somewhat high tannin at this stage. Recommend Another 5-7 years in the bottle. (1679 views) | | | Tasted by Blue Shorts on 3/3/2017 flawed bottle: Corked. What a shame. I was looking forward to drinking this. Now.....wet cardboard on the nose. Muted, odd taste.
Down the drain.
No score, of course. (2085 views) | | | Tasted by tomoem on 12/31/2016 & rated 92 points: Right out of the bottle the nose on this wine tells me that this is serious Cali stuff. Wafts of graphite notes amidst dark fruits. Very aromatic.
Initially quite closed with out of balance tannin's dominating. We threw this into a decanter for 1 hour and clearly it improved. The wine needs several hours of decant to really shine. Blackberry notes with a definite background of a spicy flavor (could it be cinnamon ?). Unique and worth finding this wine. Long finish. (2008 views) | | | Tasted by cos65 on 11/19/2016: Dark purple and a bit murky. Decanted and opened up well with lots of flavor if a bit clumsy. These "rock blocks" have been lots of fun, full of Cali fruit and cleanly made. This version is also well made if just a step behind the rest (1825 views) | | | Tasted by CR lawrence on 3/6/2016 & rated 92 points: Initially tried a glass (using a Coravin) several months ago without decanting, and drank during a quick meal which did it a disservice. Opened to finish last night with my wife after 45 minute decant; excellent nose, long legs, soft, nice texture with well integrated tannins, coffee, cinnamon and chocolate to the taste... very likely would have been even better if it had been a 2-hour decant. (2699 views) | | | Tasted by ejca on 1/17/2016: Popped and poured. Pretty good, probably should have paid more attention when everyone else was drinking it. (2102 views) | | | Tasted by BordeauxBoy on 11/28/2015 & rated 94 points: Very Nice Cali Cab. Big sweet but not over ripe fruit balanced with some great dry tannins that gave it a great structure. Oak not overly present and low acidity tends to make me think to drink it over the next 5 years. Excellent bottle. (1606 views) | | | Tasted by KeithSurg on 8/7/2015 & rated 92 points: Bold dark fruit, oak and minerals. Tannins could still use a little time to soften, but still drinking well now. (1796 views) | | | Only displaying the 25 most recent notes - click to see all notes for this wine... |
| By Antonio Galloni
Vinous, New Releases from Napa Valley (Dec 2011)
(Cliff Lede Cabernet Sauvignon Cinnamon Rhapsody Stag's Leap District) Subscribe to see review text. |
NOTE: Scores and reviews are the property of Vinous. (manage subscription channels) |
| Cliff Lede Producer websiteCabernet SauvignonCabernet Sauvignon is probably the most famous red wine grape variety on Earth. It is rivaled in this regard only by its Bordeaux stablemate Merlot, and its opposite number in Burgundy, Pinot Noir. From its origins in Bordeaux, Cabernet has successfully spread to almost every winegrowing country in the world. It is now the key grape variety in many first-rate New World wine regions, most notably Napa Valley, Coonawarra and Maipo Valley. Wherever they come from, Cabernet Sauvignon wines always seem to demonstrate a handful of common character traits: deep color, good tannin structure, moderate acidity and aromas of blackcurrant, tomato leaf, dark spices and cedarwood.
Used as frequently in blends as in varietal wines, Cabernet Sauvignon has a large number of common blending partners. Apart from the obvious Merlot and Cabernet Franc, the most prevalent of these are Malbec, Petit Verdot and Carmenere (the ingredients of a classic Bordeaux Blend), Shiraz (in Australia's favorite blend) and in Spain and South America, a Cabernet – Tempranillo blend is now commonplace. Even the bold Tannat-based wines of Madiran are now generally softened with Cabernet SauvignonUSAAmerican wine has been produced since the 1500s, with the first widespread production beginning in New Mexico in 1628. Today, wine production is undertaken in all fifty states, with California producing 84% of all U.S. wine. The continent of North America is home to several native species of grape, including Vitis labrusca, Vitis riparia, Vitis rotundifolia, and Vitis vulpina, but the wine-making industry is based almost entirely on the cultivation of the European Vitis vinifera, which was introduced by European settlers. With more than 1,100,000 acres (4,500 km2) under vine, the United States is the fourth-largest wine producing country in the world, after Italy, Spain, and France.California2021 vintage: "Unlike almost all other areas of the state, the Russian River Valley had higher than normal crops in 2021, which has made for a wine of greater generosity and fruit forwardness than some of its stablemates." - Morgan Twain-Peterson Napa Valley Napa Valley Wineries and Wine (Napa Valley Vintners)Stags Leap District Stags Leap District |
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