($115) Medium ruby. Welcoming aromas of black raspberry, chocolate and sexy oak. Lush, layered and sweet, with superb energy and depth to the black raspberry and bitter chocolate flavors. The longest on the aftertaste of these 2004 cabernets, finishing with very suave tannins and lovely aromatic persistence.

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Dark berry and oak spice aromas. Rich, mouthfilling black currant and black cherry, plus toast, minerals and cedar. Full-bodied and with substantial tannic structure, it remains on the elegant side and promises rewards with cellaring. (LM)$115  

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Production: 8,700 cases; Alcohol: 14.4%; Blend: 100% Cabernet Sauvignon; Harvest Dates: September 14 to October 16. This blend of fruit from Steinhauer Ranch (42%), St. Helena Home Vineyard (18%), Bancroft Ranch (15%), Marston Ranch (11%), and the rest tiny quantities from Chabot Vineyard, Rancho del Oso and Lampyridae emerged from an unusual growing season for Napa. Heavy rains in February were followed by hot weather in March, April and May, and cooler than normal weather in June, July and August. The harvest began early and finished a short four weeks later, an unusually quick harvest. Sweet notes of licorice, cedar wood, blackberries, toast, pepper and bay leaf are all present in this big, full-bodied, opulent, lusty California-styled wine. Exotic with loads of fruit and on a fast evolutionary track, the 2004 can be drunk now or cellared for another 10-15 years.

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Rich, dense and chewy, with ripe plum, blackberry, fresh earth and mineral flavors, framed by smoky, cedary oak. Intense and persistent, ending with a mix of cherry and currant fruit. The tannins are firm but ripe. Needs time.

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