2018 Mark Ryan Dead Horse
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Tasting notes
The 2018 Dead Horse Cabernet Sauvignon was made with 5% Merlot and 2% Petit Verdot and marked the 20th vintage for the winery. Dusty black and dark red fruit aromas spill out of a glass with lavender and rose petal elements, hints of baking spices and notions of graphite, pencil shaving, and cinnamon. Full-bodied, the Dead Horse is complex, tightly wound and ready to go. It possesses juicy acidity with fine-grained tannins, which lift the expression across the mid-palate. A mix of flavors sways in and out of focus, with black plum, dried herbs and five-spice over the long, lingering and ever-evolving finish. Just over 26,000 bottles were filled after the wine rested for 21 months in French oak. Bravo!
Critic scores
Average Score
Stephen Tanzer, Vinous
James Suckling
More reviews and scores
Ripe blackcurrants, cassis, milk chocolate, tar and hazelnut on the nose. Itâs full-bodied with firm, polished tannins. Rich, velvety core of dark fruit. 93% cabernet sauvignon, 5% merlot and 2% petit verdot. Drink now or hold.
The 2018 Cabernet Sauvignon Dead Horse (95% Cabernet, 5% Merlot, and 2% Petit Verdot) shows the pure, elegant, clean style of the estate nicely, and it benefits beautifully from time in the glass. Lots of dark, smoky currant fruits as well as tobacco, gravelly earth, and chocolate notes emerge from this medium to full-bodied, nicely concentrated, yet elegant and balanced beauty that will evolve for 15 years or more.
Deep ruby-red. Vibrant aromas of blueberry, boysenberry, blackberry and licorice lifted by a violet topnote. At once fine-grained and tightly wound, offering lovely definition and energy to its dense, primary flavors of black and purple fruits, minerals, bitter chocolate and violet. Very firmly built and backward but not hard even today. Finishes with a firm spine of tooth-dusting tannins and rising floral length. Still some oak to be absorbed. Lay this down for at least a couple years. Less minty and herbal than the very good 2017 version, but the tannins will require patience.