2014 Scarecrow M. Etain
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Tasting notes
Celia Welch has hit a home run again with the legendary J.J. Cohn Vineyard in Rutherford, a site that includes a block of old vines planted in 1945, which certainly must make them some of the oldest Cabernet vines in all of Napa Valley. There are 2,000 cases of the 2014 Monsieur Etain, which is a great enough Cabernet by itself. Wonderfully pure crème de cassis notes with some white flowers, lead pencil shavings and incense are followed by a deep, full-bodied wine with silky tannins, a layered, multi-dimensional mouthfeel and a beautiful finish of 40+ seconds. This is an exquisite, dense, rich but sexy Cabernet Sauvignon. And now for the good news – there are 2,000 cases of it. Drink it over the next 20 or more years.
Critic scores
Robert Parker
Antonio Galloni, Vinous
More reviews and scores
Graphite, smoke, licorice, incense, scorched earth and dark cherries infuse the Cabernet Sauvignon M. Etain with real depth and pedigree. Striking aromatics give the wine the freshness and energy that are typical of the vintage. The M. Etain was bottled a bit earlier than Scarecrow. Perhaps for that reason, it is super-expressive today. Far more than a second wine from the property, M. Etain increasingly has a personality all of its own. With time in the glass, the 2014 is positively striking today.
The 2014 Cabernet Sauvignon M. Étain is quite the powerhouse. Dark and imposing, it offers up a heady mix of dark-toned fruit, leather, espresso, incense, scorched earth and tobacco. The 2014 is distinguished by its super-concentrated fruit and the strong oak imprint that was common back then. It has developed beautifully since I last tasted it.
About the producer
Scarecrow shot to fame with its debut 2003 vintage. The wine, named after the The Wizard of Oz character, is made exclusively from grapes from the J. J. Cohn vineyard in Napa’s Rutherford. Scarecrow is owned by Bret Lopez (J. J. Cohn’s grandson) and is very much a rarity in Napa.