2018 Cabernet Sauvignon Private Reserve
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Tasting notes
The 2018 Cabernet Sauvignon Private Reserve is every bit as impressive today as it was last year. It might very well be the finest Private Reserve I have ever tasted. More than anything else, the 2018 impresses with its energy and total sense of finesse. It's a wine that marries power with vibrancy in grand style. As always, most of the fruit is sourced from Beringer's ranches on Howell Mountain.
Critic scores
Average Score
Jeb Dunnuck
Antonio Galloni, Vinous
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The 2018 Cabernet Sauvignon Private Reserve is a blend of 98% Cabernet Sauvignon, 1% Cabernet Franc and 1% Petit Verdot. Deep garnet-purple in color, it opens with subtle notes of fresh blackberries, mulberries and crushed blackcurrants, plus emerging hints of redcurrant jelly, bay leaves, unsmoked cigars and cedar chest. Full-bodied, rich and plush, it delivers mouth-coating black fruits and loads of savory layers with plenty of freshness and great length.
The 2018 Cabernet Sauvignon Private Reserve is based on 98% Cabernet Sauvignon and 1% each of Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot, brought up in 90% new French oak. It’s a beautiful wine that shows the vintage’s pure, elegant, yet concentrated style perfectly. Gorgeous crème de cassis, violets, blueberries, and cedar pencil notes emerge from the glass, and this beauty builds incrementally on the palate, with full-bodied richness, a lively, pure, layered texture, ripe tannins, and a great finish. It can be enjoyed any time over the coming 20-25 years.
The 2018 Cabernet Sauvignon Private Reserve is fabulous. As always, the Private Reserve is built on a core of Howell Mountain fruit. Black cherry, plum, chocolate, grilled herb, spice and licorice all flesh out in the glass. The Private Reserve packs a serious punch, but like all the 2018s shows a more refined expression of tannin that really elevates it.