2006 Rivers-Marie Cabernet Sauvignon

Popped and poured the first of our ‘06’s tonight for Paul and Stefania as they said that they read a lot of people comparing their cabernet’s to these. In all honestly, I don’t see the comparison, but to each their own. Two totally different regions, being the Napa Valley and the Santa Cruz Mountains. I think that this fruit is actually sourced from Howell Mountain if I remember correctly.

Popped and poured with a gorgeous purple garnet color in the glass. On the nose, this immediately smelled sweet to me, and I was expecting a big, juicy, fruit forward cabernet! Tons of dark fruits on the nose: blackberry, raspberry, currants, cassis, plum, vanilla, and spice. There was all kinds of stuff going on here, and I couldn’t help but get excited.

On the palate, this wine was well integrated, with great fruits. More spicy blackberry and strawberry, with a nice herbal quality. This is juicy with nice mocha tones as well as vanilla, and I am actually surprised how well this is drinking when popped and poured. Still some nice acidity and tannin there, and this will settle out in time along with the alcohol. This is definitely drinking nice right now, and would benefit from a few hours in the decanter. Wish I would have had money to load up on this wine when I had the chance. Nice QPR, and very elegant. 93 points. Cheers!