2011 Bevan The Curmudgeon
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Tasting notes
Savory herbs, menthol, tar, licorice and plums all come together in the 2011 Curmudgeon, followed by mocha and espresso notes from the Cabernet Franc. A voluptuous, expressive finish rounds things out in style. Curmudgeon is 2/3rds Cabernet Franc and 1/3rd Cabernet Sauvignon, all from Oakville. This is a fabulous showing from Russell Bevan. Production was tiny, just about 25% of the level expected in 2012.
Critic scores
Average Score
Robert Parker
Antonio Galloni, Vinous
More reviews and scores
From two Oakville vineyards, Tin Box and Tench, the 2011 Curmudgeon is a blend of 66.67% Cabernet Franc and the rest Cabernet Sauvignon. Its opaque purple color is followed by soaring aromas of spring flowers, pen ink, espresso roast, white chocolate, black currants and mulberries. This deep, full-bodied, seamlessly constructed wine reveals perfectly integrated wood, tannin, alcohol and acidity. An amazing effort, it is already delicious, complex and outrageous. Drink it over the next decade. I continue to be blown away by the wines from Russell Bevan and his partner, Victoria de Cresenzo. (I’ll save my reviews of the Bevan Cellars wines from Sonoma appellations for the December issue when I will be writing an extensive report on that viticultural area.) These are by no means shy wines, but their richness and complexity are remarkable. Despite their massive size, concentration and density, they reveal tremendous polish, finesse and elegance. I tasted five barrel samples of 2012s, and all of them were almost beyond belief in their richness, bombastic fruit and remarkable intensity and purity combined with amazing polish and delineation. Two cuvees that have the potential to merit perfect scores include the 2012 Cabernet Sauvignon Harbison Vineyard (300 cases produced) from Oakville and the 2012 Cabernet Sauvignon Vineyard 6110 (225 cases) from Stags Leap. Tel. (707) 542-0123