2007 Winston Hill Cabernet Sauvignon Frank Family Vineyards
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Tasting notes
(14.5% alcohol): Bright medium ruby. Blackberry, boysenberry, licorice, violet, minerals and spicy oak on the vibrant nose. Lovely classy, fine-grained wine with juicy depth to its pure flavors of dark berries, bitter chocolate and savory minerality. Not a particularly thick wine but classier and darker than the Cabernet Sauvignon Reserve and with better support for its tannins. Finishes firm and impressively long, with lovely building energy.
Critic scores
Robert Parker
Stephen Tanzer, Vinous
More reviews and scores
Opaque ruby. Dense, deeply pitched aromas of cassis, cherry compote, cola, licorice and smoky herbs, with a sexy floral note gaining strength with air. Lush and creamy, with powerful dark fruit flavors and notes of bitter cherry and candied rose. Solid but harmonious tannins add shape to the very long, smoky finish, which repeats the cherry note strongly. This is a blend of cabernet sauvignon, merlot, cabernet franc and petit verdot.
The most expensive offering is the 2007 Winston Hill Proprietary Red. Dominated by Cabernet Sauvignon (86%) blended with Petit Verdot, Merlot and Cabernet Franc, production is just under 1,000 cases. The wine is more tightly wound than the Cabernets exhibiting a deep ruby/purple color and a restrained nose that is difficult to coax out of the glass. In the mouth, it reveals sweetness, full-bodied power, beautiful elegance and a sense of graciousness and restraint as well as plenty of flavor, intensity, power and full-bodied appeal. Still hiding much of its character, this 2007 should evolve for at least two decades. This ancient winery, established in 1884, resurfaced in 1992. Tel. (707) 942-0753