2016 Ballard Cabernet Sauvignon
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Tasting notes
From Spring Mountain and vines planted in 1999 and 2000, the 2016 Cabernet Sauvignon Ballard Canyon has a complex bouquet of bay leaf, lead pencil shavings, underbrush and sweet berry and currant fruits. It’s another polished, elegant wine from Smith that has classic Spring Mountain wildness and scrub brush notes, medium to full body, fine tannins, and a great finish. Give bottles a year or two and it’s going to evolve beautifully for 15-20 years.
Critic scores
Average Score
Jeb Dunnuck
Antonio Galloni, Vinous
More reviews and scores
The 2016 Cabernet Sauvignon Ballard Vineyard has turned out beautifully. Ample and expressive, with tremendous character, the Ballard is incredibly harmonious for such a young wine. Inky blue/purplish berry fruit, wild flowers, licorice and spice develop in the glass. Best of all, the 2016 will deliver tons of pure pleasure with only minimal cellaring. This is such an inviting wine.
Deep garnet-purple colored, the 2016 Cabernet Sauvignon Ballard Vineyard delivers intense scents of creme de cassis, blackberry compote and blueberry pie with hints of cinnamon stick, cloves, star anise and eucalyptus plus wafts of cigar box and black truffles. Full-bodied, rich, spicy and totally seductive, it has a compelling velvety frame and fantastic freshness lifting the long minted black fruit finish.
The 2016 Cabernet Sauvignon Ballard Vineyard, from a site on Spring Mountain, is one of the silkiest and most sensual of the Cabernets in the Du Mol range. Dark and supple on the palate, with medium-bodied structure, the 2016 looks like it will be easy to drink relatively early. There is plenty to like, although I don't quite see the pedigree that informs the very best Cabernets in the range.