2011 Spottswoode Cabernet Sauvignon Estate
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Tasting notes
The 2011 Cabernet Sauvignon Estate shows the cooler nature of the vintage, revealing some herbal, green notes as well as ample cedar, chocolate, and darker fruits. Classicly Cabernet aromatically, it’s medium to full-bodied on the palate and has great tannins, plenty of sweet fruit, and a seamless, elegant texture. This is another wine offering a classic, old school, yet pure, balanced, classy style that’s a joy to drink. Complex and nuanced today, with a supple texture, drink this beauty over the coming 10-15 years.
Critic scores
Average Score
Antonio Galloni, Vinous
Lisa Perrotti-Brown MW, Wine Advocate
More reviews and scores
I have tasted the 2011 Cabernet Sauvignon enough to longer be surprised at how well it shows next to the vintages that surround it. Perfumed and floral, with striking nuance, the 2011 is exceptionally beautiful. Lavender, menthol and sweet red cherry are all laced throughout. Because of the cold, rainy conditions, the 2011 is naturally a bit more floral and savory than the norm, but it also has more than enough fruit and overall depth to balance things out. Once again, Spottswoode's 2011 is exquisitely beautiful.
Deep garnet colored, the 2011 Cabernet Sauvignon leaps from the glass with notions of minted cassis, chocolate box, rose hip tea and forest floor over a core of kirsch, Black Forest cake, dried Mediterranean herbs and mossy bark. Medium-bodied, lithe and refreshing in the mouth, the palate has wonderful freshness and a lovely mineral-tinged finish. Still very youthful.
About the producer
Spottswoode is one of those rare Napa estates whose reputation rests less on volume or spectacle than on persistent exactitude. Set on the western edge of St Helena, where the Mayacamas rise and afternoon breezes temper the valley’s warmth, the vineyard occupies a favoured pocket of the appellation.