2011 Beringer Cabernet Sauvignon Chabot Vineyard

The 2011 Cabernet Sauvignon Chabot Vineyard is super sexy. Sweet red berries, flowers, mocha, mint, licorice and spices all flesh out as the 2011 opens up. A silky, expressive wine, the Chabot impresses for its balance, harmony and class. The 2011 is pure sensuality. There is plenty of early appeal in this supple, radiant Cabernet. Next to the other single-vineyard Cabernets, the Chabot comes across as a bit simple, but there is no denying the wine's overall balance and sense of harmony.

The 2011 Cabernet Sauvignon Chabot Vineyard in St. Helena produced a chocolaty, earthy wine with lots of character as well as richness. Despite the enormity of this enterprise (multiple wineries and a global network), the flagship estate in northern California, Beringer Vineyards, continues to be in very capable winemaking hands, and the quality of the wines remains exceptionally impressive, particularly when you look at some of the huge production numbers of their lower priced offerings. The red wines currently in the market are from the challenging 2011 vintage. As for the Private Reserve Cabernets, production can vary significantly depending on the vintage, from around 8,000 cases to nearly twice that in an abundant year. As for the single vineyard wines, I will keep my notes short as these are only available to members of the Beringer Wine Club. I was surprised by how strongly all these 2011s performed, but three of the single vineyards are on Howell Mountain. These are all excellent wines, but it seems to me that the Private Reserve, a blend of the best lots from these sources, always turns out to be Beringer’s finest Cabernet Sauvignon. Tel. (707) 963-8989