Wine & Spirits - Winter 2023 - 57

US Cabernet & Blends
a leafy back note. The plum flavors are tart in
the end, lasting on fruit-skin tannins, a dark
and grippy red for barbecue. -P.J.C. §
87 | Highlands 41
CENTRAL COAST & LODI
90 | Chloe
$15
2021 Paso Robles Cabernet Sauvignon
(BEST BUY) ^ With scents of plums and tar, this
is sleek, dry and balanced for brisket. -P.J.C. §
cocoa depth with air. It's a big wine, with
cardamom and cherry vanilla flavors, with a
dense, chewy give to those flavors and lively
acidity. -P.J.C. (400 cases) §
on; the wine needs time and cellaring, then
a decanter alongside some lamb shoulder.
-P.J.C. (200 cases) §
93 | Quilceda Creek
$250
$17
2021 San Lucas Cabernet Sauvignon (BEST
BUY) ^ Impressive for the price, this has a warm
concentration of fruit aromas-dark berry
and dried plum-along with a cocoa note
that melds into the ripe, smoky tannins. It's
extracted but correct, for a steak. -P.J.C. §
88 | Miller Family
$15
2021 Central Coast Ballard Lane Cabernet
Sauvignon (BEST BUY) ^ This is chewy and a
touch reduced, its firm oak frame filled in by
dark berry sweetness. Burled up but vinous,
with a good weight for tri-tip. -P.J.C. §
88 | Lange Twins
$16
2020 Lodi Ivory & Burt Cabernet Sauvignon
(BEST BUY) ^ Almost like ripasso in its
residual sweetness, this has a jammy core
of fruit cleaned up by ripe, robust tannins.
-P.J.C. (1,200 cases) §
SIERRA FOOTHILLS
91 | Boeger
$24
2020 El Dorado Cabernet Sauvignon (BEST
BUY) ^ Ripe and spicy, this has pleasingly savory
scents of cedar, mint and plum. The palate is
dusty and lively, carrying a pine forest freshness
over preserved plum and capsicum in a
dusty tannic finish. -P.J.C. (890 cases) §
91 | Lava Cap
$32
2022 El Dorado County Cabernet Sauvignon
^ This leads with scents of cardamom
and cherry skin. Its sunny fruit and rustic,
medium-grained tannins make it a cabernet
to pour with something hearty, like lamb
sugo. -P.J.C. (4,000 cases) §
CALIFORNIA AVA
90 | Precision
$25
2021 California Navigator Cabernet Sauvignon
^ Impressively red fruited, this has a
bright red-berry scent and a focused intensity
on the palate, the texture firm-grained and
concentrated for steak.-P.J.C. §
88 | Kenwood Vineyards $14
2021 California Cabernet Sauvignon (BEST
BUY) ^ This has a dramatically vinous with its
tanbark scent, a hint of green, notes of violets
and tree bark. Its flavors are firm and
focused, while delivering plenty of complexity
for the price. -P.J.C. §
WASHINGTON
COLUMBIA VALLEY
93 | Gramercy Cellars
2020 Columbia Valley Cabernet Sauvignon
^ A beautiful sense of composure is
the first impression in this poised Washington
cabernet, nearly all of it sourced from
Quilceda Creek's estate parcels at Champoux
Vineyard in the Horse Heaven Hills. It
has the savor of the hills, scents of sundried
tomato and soy, clove, tobacco, black cherry,
the fruit pure and red as red can be, all delivered
with a polish and tension that's impressive,
powerful yet elegant. Give it a year in
the cellar before decanting for lamb shoulder.
-P.J.C. §
92 | Avennia
$75
2020 Columbia Valley Sestina Cabernet
Sauvignon ^ From largely old-vine sources,
including Dionysus, Bacchus and Red Willow,
this has a scent of tobacco and leather,
savory and dark, with a plush, plummy elegance
to the fruit. The texture has an oldvine
feel, suede-like, with cocoa-scented tannins.
Slightly reticent at the moment, give it
a year's cellar time and it will sing. -P.J.C.
(388 cases) §
92 | Gramercy Cellars
$32
2019 Columbia Valley Lower East Cabernet
Sauvignon ^ Lower East is Gramercy's
entry-level cabernet, and it overdelivers
mightily. The 2019 is savory, with ethereal
scents of evergreen and pine tips, cedar,
then cardamom and cinnamon. This palette
is all in the service of dark blackberry fruit,
dense and firm, with the concentration and
ageability of a wine twice the price. -P.J.C.
(2,500 cases) §
91 | 14 Hands
$40
$110
91 | Lava Cap
$45
2020 El Dorado Estate Cabernet Sauvignon
^ Leading with scents of pine and cedar,
this cabernet takes on cigar-box notes and
2020 Columbia Valley Reserve Cabernet
Sauvignon ^ The first impression of this
remarkable reserve is of mass and concentration,
a dark creosote intensity underlaying
dark berry fruit. A multi-vineyard blend
drawing from Bacchus and Phinny Hill
vineyards, among others, this wine's fruit
takes a wild, brambly turn with air, its midpalate
sweetness firmed up by modest oak
frame. All this to say there's much going
2019 Horse Heaven Hills The Reserve
Cabernet Sauvignon ^ This leads with scents
of oak and a heady leather accent, giving it
a bucolic savor. The flavors are dark and
equally savory, leaning into beef consommé,
sweet gingerbread and plummy fruit. It's
approachable, generous, and will bring its
energy to a roast chicken. -P.J.C. (361 cases) §
91 | Browne Family
$50
2020 Columbia Valley Premier Collection
Cabernet Sauvignon ^ This posh cabernet
leads with scents of olive and clove; it's
vinous and savory from the start. The flavors
are unexpectedly rich, dark as black plum
compote, concentrated, brooding and chocolatey-a
powerful wine for steak. -P.J.C.
(707 cases) §
W INTER 2023
WINE & SPIR IT S
57
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Wine & Spirits - Winter 2023

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