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| Drinking Windows and Values |
| Community Tasting History |
| Community Tasting Notes (average 92.9 pts. and median of 93 pts. in 77 notes) - hiding notes with no text | | | Tasted by RockinCabs on 6/3/2023 & rated 93 points: Blueberry, black cherry, mineral, anise and silky tannin. There are touches of sage, spice, florals and a bit of heat coming through. The fruit is dropping a bit and the abv shows, but this is still a great wine.
For me this was at its best a few years ago, but approaching 20-yrs it is holding strong. A excellent representation of Stags Leap District for sur. (624 views) | | | Tasted by gteran76 on 4/8/2022 & rated 94 points: Opened with a regular corkscrew and the cork crumbled and broke into pieces. Also the top was red which may be a sign of heat at some point. So I choose not to decant, vaccumed and placed in the fridge for about one hour.
We started the night with a 2018 Rhys Alpine Chard (93+) and then drank Poetry about 3 hours after opened it…
The wine is clear, clean, beautiful nose of flowers, bright acidity, low in tannins, very nice complexity and good finish. It’s a great wine to pair with pastas, cheese or filet mignon.
Drink of hold but I don’t see it getting any better. At least our bottle! (1642 views) | | | Tasted by ONEFIVE on 10/31/2021: Densely ruby in the glass.
Black and red fruit on the nose. Cassis, raspberry, blackberry, and elements of baking spice, vanilla, and tobacco.
Full bodied on the palate with powdery tannin, moderate acidity, and a rich core of fruit.
Holding up incredibly well and many years ahead. It’s a big wine with the richness, tannin, and alcohol you’d expect, but it’s done in a very refined way. Truly Stags Leap District. Drink now and over the next 15+ years. (1569 views) | | | Tasted by ONEFIVE on 4/4/2021: Light bricking at the edge, garnet core.
Opens up aromatically after about an hour. Cassis, tobacco, red fruit, espresso, and a bit of tomato leaf.
On the palate, this is still solidly structured. Plenty of grippy tannin, fruit, and acidity to keep it in check.
Ultimately, this is great now with a ribeye or some aged cheddar. It will likely peak once the tannin settles. When that may be, who knows. I’d enjoy now and for the next 5-10 years for the power and perhaps longer if more subtly emerges. (1791 views) | | | Tasted by The Wine Sherpa on 12/31/2020 & rated 95 points: This was a beautiful wine. Very balanced and soft tannins at this point. Recommend drinking now or within a year or so. Caramel on the nose and mid palate stands out. Medium acid. (1903 views) | | | Tasted by mjf@ulkner on 4/25/2019 & rated 93 points: Full bodied. Sweet blackberry and black currant notes. Smooth and silky, without any hard edges. The tannins are nearly fully integrated. A bit soft to be considered excellent. Very good now. (2673 views) | | | Tasted by Quiet Lion on 4/3/2019 & rated 94 points: Decanted and served over dinner. Silky, round Stag's Leap Cabernet with mature tannins and medium acid. Red and dark fruit. Beautiful flavors although it lacks the focus and intensity of the best cult cabs. (2324 views) | | | Tasted by Bozekt on 3/31/2019 & rated 94 points: Awesome wine! Slightly oxidative, but only enough to add caramel and toffee notes to the nose and palate. Structure was beautifully integrated. Deep aromas of blackberry, black plum, and currant. Palate was smooth and sexy - still showed the fruit on the attack, but tannins were medium and silky on the finish. Acid - medium, ABV - high, but balanced. Finish was long and supple. This was an eye opening bottle for me about 10 years ago, and still epic now. Could easily go 5 more years, but why wait? (1972 views) | | | Tasted by Coachron13 on 1/15/2019 & rated 93 points: Much better than our prior bottle, so that must have been a mildly tainted bottle. Barely starting to show its age, but should hold up for another 2-3 years. (1849 views) | | | Tasted by AYKC on 11/24/2018 & rated 97 points: Exquisite wine. A robust nose of blueberry and butter, warm rich wet dirt, new leather, Black Forest cake. On the palate not so heavy, silky smooth, albeit moments of dryness, medium finish (1781 views) | | | Tasted by Somm David T on 10/11/2018 & rated 95 points: The nose shows sweet & a touch sour floral fruits. Some of the fruits have a baked quality. Ripe; blackberries, dark cherries, stewed plum, baked cherries & black raspberries & dry cranberries. Dark chocolate, soft, delicate minerals, light spice, light layered baking spices; vanilla, cinnamon & clove. Some dates, figs & prunes, star anise, saddle-wood leading to cedar, dark, rich, sweet soil, dry rock powder, steeped fruit tea and dark fresh & withering florals.
The body is medium and tannins are round and soft. The flavors are ripe & delicious. The fruits are slightly baked & stewed. Ripe; blackberries, dark cherries, stewed plum, baked cherries & black raspberries & dry cranberries. Dark chocolate, soft, delicate minerals, light spice, light layered baking spices; vanilla, cinnamon & clove. Some dates, figs & prunes. Anise, saddle-wood leading to cedar, dark, rich, sweet soil, dry rock powder, steeped fruit tea and dark fresh & withering florals. The acidity fresh, lively and like a waterfall. The finish is flushed out. Balanced, easy to drink but it seems like the bottle might have been longer than optimal as it showed a touch faded. For $350 a bottle at the winery, one can do much better at that price point. That’s not to say it wasn’t a good wine. (1376 views) | | | Tasted by bobh22314 on 10/1/2018 & rated 93 points: Orange with a hint of brown at the rim. Black currants in the nose
Tannins still evident but mostly resolved. Big mouthfeel with lots of black fruits and some heat. Long finish.
An auction bottle so not sure of storage but will be drinking my remaining bottles over the next year (1130 views) | | | Tasted by Doctor Koulodare on 8/5/2018 & rated 95 points: A beautifully aged wine. A blend of 89% Cab Sauv/7% Malbec/2% PV/2% Merlot, with great notes of licorice, blueberry, cherry liqueur. Very plush tannins, a great finish. (1301 views) | | | Tasted by RockinCabs on 9/16/2017 & rated 93 points: Nose: Beautiful perfume of blackberry, plum/cherry and cassis with earthy barnyard and garden notes notes. Some leather and licorice notes as well. Palate: Enters with a nice textured and layered feel, complex mid-palate of blackberry, cherry, graphite and loamy earth. Plush and precise. Finish: Long streaks of black fruit stick with you, and nice nuances of clove and allspice as well.
Vineyards are close to Shafer HSS and this always show similar fruit quality to me. Great wine, I'll save my last one for another 5+ years and see how it develops. (2367 views) | | | Tasted by flashvictor on 6/3/2017 & rated 96 points: Drank on wife's birthday at RPM steak. This was decanted one hour prior to drinking. This is drinking great right now. Beautiful cassis and cocoa nose leads to a medium plus body of dark fruits with hints of red pepper, cigar leaf. Finish lasts over a minute.
This is drinking at peak. I think this will hold for a few years but I am unsure if anymore improvement will occur. Drink up! (2487 views) | | | Tasted by Coachron13 on 4/3/2016 & rated 91 points: Maybe a questionable bottle given the other stellar reviews, but this Poetry vintage is not as stellar as others we have had. Fruit is too dominant, wine is not balanced enough. Maybe more time to age will help it??? (3459 views) | | | Tasted by bobh22314 on 12/13/2015 & rated 94 points: not much nose. Full bodied soft with a some tannins on the finish Long finish. Tons of fruit which has softened to a beautiful round mouthful. (3852 views) | | | Tasted by Montaniel on 9/16/2015 & rated 94 points: one of the best I have had from Cliff Lede.... (4090 views) | | | Tasted by KeithSurg on 5/26/2014 & rated 95 points: Decanted from magnum. My last bottle, and drinking beautifully now. Big wine with flavors if ripe blue and dark fruit, mocha, smoke, and mint. Nice acidity that keeps the sweetness in check. Bold, soft tannins. (4882 views) | | | Tasted by JDV.DDSPHD on 12/22/2013 & rated 96 points: So I read the other reviews and in my opinion this was outstanding. Had this compared to the Phelps Insignia and I actually enjoyed this more. This was a classic California Cab. Fruit forward and BIG. Great finish and depth for me. Not as complex as the Insignia but it tasted much more youthful and energetic for me. The fruit rolls over the palate and you can taste the region...stag's leap. I prefer most oakville and Howell Mtn cabs even Rutherford to Oakville but this was ripe and may be hitting its stride. Massive tannins and structure and overall blockbuster for me. We each have our own tastes but for me this was up my alley. (4816 views) | | | Tasted by GlenviewGSW on 11/11/2013 & rated 95 points: Birthday wine takien to charcoal oven for dinner. Great nose and beautiful aged flavor profile with lush ,long finish. Outstanding (3957 views) | | | Tasted by mjf@ulkner on 10/27/2013 & rated 93 points: Consumed from less than ideal glassware. Black as night. Nice cassis nose. Full bodied ripe flavors. Fine tannins on finish. Age has rounded the edges of this nicely. Probably near peak. (3571 views) | | | Tasted by ONEFIVE on 8/8/2013: Still has time. A great bottle of stags. Went great with steak. (3591 views) | | | Tasted by slrankin on 1/28/2013 & rated 96 points: Extraordinary wine, 2 hour double decant, another two and a half hours to drink. Ended too soon. Beautiful nose, long finish. Second time I have had this wine- memorable. Wonderful compliment to a nicely seasoned medium rare dry aged rib-eye. Nuanced Stag's Leap volcanic rock, clay and minerals. Floral hints. Reminds me a great deal of a recently tasted Chambolle-Musigny Groffier Amoureuses 1993. Wish I had more than one bottle left of this wine. (2900 views) | | | Tasted by JJA on 12/25/2012 & rated 90 points: Hmm...... this was a disappointment. Served the magnum on 2012 Christmas Day and it was uninspiring. This wine has lost most of its personality in the last few years. It used to be a bold but also elegant California Cabernet. Now it is neither bold nor elegant. The bottom line is that the wine did not stand the test of time. This is surprising since wine should age more slowly in a larger format bottle. Unfortunately this is probably my last investment in the higher priced wines of Cliff Lede. They just aren't worth the money. They are great young, but don't age well. (2504 views) | | | Only displaying the 25 most recent notes - click to see all notes for this wine... |
| By Stephen Tanzer
Vinous, Vintage Retrospective: 2005 Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon (May 2016) (5/1/2016)
(Cliff Lede Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon Poetry Napa) Subscribe to see review text. | By Stephen Tanzer
Vinous, May/June 2009, IWC Issue #144
(Cliff Lede Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon Poetry Stags 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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