David Kline

9.6

2013. Dark presence with violet-black from edge to end. Unctious. El Capitan tears with solar flare outcroppings linear paralleling across the cliff face. Lovely mushroom and earth interplay here with blackberry bourgeoning and black olive wisps. Forêt Noir leanings with brittle and toffee behind a curious veil of grill smoke. Palate is met with a rush of intense flavor, warm dark chocolate and raw nib, concentrated black cherry, cedar, blackberries and red currant, ripe blackberry, licorice, tobacco, and a drop of treacle. Wild resonance! Flavor permanences.

#Colgin #colginIXestate #2013 #Napa #StHelena — 3 months ago

David Kline

9.5

Medium viscosity; dark, glass-painter. Warm cherries in black and deep red with brownie and tiramisu notes. Nano star anise, black pepper, and tea. These on the nose. Sublime mouthfeel showcases the blackberry, black currant, boysenberry, coffe and sweet tobacco notes that rotate into a persistent resonance.

#outpost #howellmountain #napa #cabernet #cab #cabernetsauvignon #cawine #mountainfruit — a year ago

with Courtney

Vasanth Balakrishnan

9.0

Proper #napa #cabernetsauvignon - fruit forward, but balanced. — 3 years ago

Vasanth Balakrishnan

9.0

Delightful #napa #cabernetsauvignon ; expected jammy bramble fruit aromas backed by cigar box, leather undertones. Balanced with noticeable bright tartness to offset fruit, dried spices mid palate, grippy tannins on the finish. — 3 years ago

Vasanth Balakrishnan

9.0

Interesting enterprise to taste a 12 year old #napa #cabernetsauvignon in the value segment of the market likely around $15 - $20 at release. Cork was well soaked and wine tastes of age, but not tired at all. In fact after a day in the fridge it seems to have gained some vim. Typical bramble fruit set on top of stewed plums. Palate is a bit earthier, less fruit-forward - plenty of acidity, chocolate and coffee notes mid-palate and still sturdy tannins on the finish. It must have been stored well at the retailer. — 3 years ago

David Kline

9.4

Coffee-espresso and bakers chocolate; blueberry-blackberry. Smoky, with dark toasted rye, cassis, sloe berry, mulberry, and darkest tobacco. Licorice, black currant cassis, and tobacco reflections on the palate. 10 years unwavering here, rich with dark, burnt brown sugar and cedar, pliant tannins, mouth coating richness. Very seductive and extracted, rich and round.


#araujoestate #araujo #araujoaltagracia #altagracia #napa #2012vintage — 3 years ago

David Kline

9.0

Chalky grape and balsa, blackberry, and plum nose with soft smoke and jasmine with a sweet petrol gloss. Soft mouthfeel turns bing cherry and underripe blueberries bordering green. Chewy. Big fruit tannins. A spicy pepper that always turns piquant-fruit. Young in every way, would love to see this chrysalis emerge.


#lajotavineyardco #laJotahowellmountainestate #lajota #howellmountain #merlot #napa #napavalley — 3 years ago

David Kline

9.4

Inky cab with purple-tinged blood blackness from rim to rim. Glass painter with star bright reflectivity. Viscous Frankenstein hair tears over glacial-carved canyon. Nose of black cherry, raisinated currant, light toast, lighter pepper, carnation, violet, licorice, blackberries with honey. Mouth-coating with a luxurious mouthfeel showing silky tannins with a modicum of grain. Cassis, graphite, baked blueberry, black currant. Sustain. Bold and unabashed.

#colgin #ColginTychsonHill #Cabernet #cab #cabernetsauvignon #napa #napacab #estategrown #estatebottled #2019 #nspavalleycab #napavalley — 3 months ago

David Kline

9.4

Glass painting purple-black with vivid reflectivity. Zero variation. Chocolate mint nose with dried blackberry. Cassis and currants. The general aspiration of taste buds awakening to a joyous mouthfeel showing fruit and oak tannins in a nice dance. Cedar, blackberry black cherry and baked black currant with mint a sparkling resonance that gives and gives again. Very nice.

#colgin #colginjubilation #colgincellars #napa #napacab — 7 months ago

David Kline

9.3

Rim to rim color density. Red and black cherries poke through cedar and sweet tobacco on the nose with dark chocolate chunks, plum, prune and date, toasted sesame, cinnamon, rose petal, and cardamom. Chewy tannins that roll satin-smooth initially, then cassis, black currant and licorice flip the script. Graphite and blackberry frame dark chocolate and mocha-tobacco, oak and black bread.


#dunn #dunnvineyards #howellmountain #howell #napa #angwin #cabernet #cabernetsauvignon #cab #cabsauv #2014 #2014napa — 2 years ago

David Kline

9.3

Reliquus 2019 cab St Helena Napa (grace family).
This one shines bright with red cherry and raspberry notes leading a nose of blueberry and cassis as strawberry peeks through. The palate is silky and refined despite grainy tannins which amplify versus detract. Depth and intensity that is a dichotomy considering the fruited nose. Elegant, sinewy and serpentine. Scrumptious.





#gracefamily #napa #sthelena #cabernetsauvignon #cab #reliquus

— 3 years ago

Vasanth Balakrishnan

8.4

While the 2020 vintage looks to be considerably better than previous reviewers - still looking at a budget wine made in a crowd-please style that falls short on quality. Noticeable spice and smoke notes lurk behind jammy bramble fruit on the nose. Taste confirms a heavy hand with new oak. Texture is pleasing but the near-profane oak and unbalanced RS suggest a more cynical, less-serious effort for a #napa #pinotnoir . — 3 years ago

David Kline

9.7

Lovely, smoky, mushroom-funk with ethereal violet perfume emanating from lemon madeleines. Perfect expression of cassis and blackberries and black cherry, touches of sweet tobacco reveal a jungle of verdant herbs. Amazing cab franc with the full spectrum of textures.



#lajota #lajotavineyardco #lajotahowellmountainestate #howellmountain #napa #napavalley #cabernetfranc #cabfranc #oakville — 3 years ago

with Courtney

Vasanth Balakrishnan

9.0

Cork was soft and crumbly - lost into the bottle so out comes the strainer. First uncork and pour impressions concerned me that this wine was tired with disappointing oxidation. Fortunately, fortitude is rewarded so after a half hour, charming caramel, marzipan and amaretto tertiary notes waft up from the glass, followed by secluded dark fruit and some latent spicy notes. Palate is the same, tannins are still hearty though muted from their likely initial gnarly state. Acidity remains current though the relatively rapid evolution after 14 years suggest a #napa #cabernetsauvignon gently coasting down past peak. The wine paired quite nicely with spinach & parsley pesto rigatoni finished with breadcrumb and pistachio crumble - especially considering the nutty notes in the wine and muted fruit. — 4 years ago

David Kline

9.7

Nearly black in glass with no variation; blood when underlit. Nose shows rich black currant, cassis, licorice and espresso notes accented with violet and pecan; Black cherry and tobacco peek through cinnamon and nutmeg. Sensuous. Heavier mouthfeel shows focused blackberry, prune and mocha, coffee liqueur and vanilla bean, powerful tobacco and a soft cedar. Tannins well integrated, and resonance unparalleled with dark fruits washing like an ocean at night.

#Coho #DiamondMountain #2012vintage #canb #napacab #napa #cabernetsaugvinon #CohoSummitVineRanch #SSummitVineRanch #DiamondMountainDistrict #814cases #CohoWines — 5 months ago

with Courtney

Vasanth Balakrishnan

9.1

Excellent high-QPR SV #napa #cabernetsauvignon. It leans “Old Worldish” but still has plenty of big fruit up front, nicely balanced, some coffee and subtle earthy undertones -and velvety tannins to close out. Call this the “Anti-Caymus” 💣 #costcowines — 2 years ago

David Kline

9.2

Big and bold nose shows cedar and espresso and sweet notes of blackberry, violets and cassis. Full bodied and full of muscles. Dark chocolate with espresso aspirations, black cherry and blackberry reductions, black currant and blacker tobacco. Toffee and cedar explode and melt into a lingering, unctuous chocolate ganache.

#elusa #kenefickranchvineyards #cabernetfranc #cabfranc #calistoga #napa #napavalley — 2 years ago

with Courtney

David Kline

9.1

Grace family st Helena cab 2018
Juicy plum and blackberry, cedar, oak and cherry, violets and smoke.
Firm tannins support black pepper, black cherry and cassis in abundance. Mouth-coating and intense with tertiary flavors of violet and graphite cinnamon and licorice.






#cabernetsauvignon #cab

#napavalley

#sthelena #napa

#napacab #estategrown — 3 years ago

Vasanth Balakrishnan

9.1

A less well-known varietal from the famous producer in #napa . 100% #sauvignonnlanc echoes a well-balanced #bordeauxblanc but with a notable Napa sun-kissed vitality. Subtle tropical fruit + apricot, citrus aromas - sumptuous palate texture, white/golden fruit balanced by satisfying acidity. Excellent pairing for a lightly-spiced shrimp coconut curry rice bowl though not great QPR. — 3 years ago

David Kline

9.4

Soft, lovely, bread-y nose of black currant fur, licorice, light mint forcing upward, sprouting through potting soil. Cinnamon and blueberry warmly embraced by dark bread and small specks of black pepper. Fruit tannins thickly house-painted across your front teeth in a real sense. Muscle. Licorice-charcoal, bitters, blackberry, black currant, graphite-smoke halo, black cherry, oak and cedar, wound up and closed in places, but powerhouse lurking in the shadows.



#lajota #lajotavineyardco #lajotahowellmountainestate
#howellmountain #oakville #napa #napavalley #cab #cabernetsaugvinon — 3 years ago

with Courtney