Cristaldi Scores

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This 98% Cabernet Franc from Casa de Viñas in the Livermore Valley was aged in 17.5% new French oak, 25% third-use Hungarian oak, and 67.5% neutral barrels. It’s a more subtle, refined expression of the variety, with sagebrush nuances, black currant, plum, and accents of new wood cedar. Medium-bodied, it shows zesty blood orange acidity and emerging notes of pine, mint, and eucalyptus that add an unexpected—but very welcome—freshness.

The 2022 Cabernet is a blend of 88% Cabernet Sauvignon, 6.85% Cabernet Franc, 2.4% Petit Verdot, 1.75% Malbec, and 1% Merlot, sourced from the Bavarian Lion Vineyard in Knights Valley, Sonoma County. Aged 18 months in 59% new French oak barrels, it’s a juicy, supple red with aromas of kirsch, plum, and subtle Asian spice. The palate is soft and satiny, unfolding with ripe red and dark fruit tones before finishing with an easy, graceful burst of blue fruit brightness. The Ehret family has been farming their Knights Valley estate for three generations, reserving their best fruit since 2005 for their own small production (handled in the cellar by winemaker Erin Green).

The Cabernet is aged 18 months in 55% new French oak and 10% concrete. This is an ultra-delicious wine in 2023, with super expressive aromatics: dark berry fruit, tobacco spice, violet, graphite, and little pops of blue fruit. There’s a cocoa-powder tannin quality on the rich, layered palate, along with a chalky mineral complexity that drives the lengthy finish, all fueled by bright baking-spice notes and wild herbs. Sourced from SJ Ranch, Del Rio, Oliver, Farrow, and Aperture Estate. That freshness factor in this wine is partly the vintage, but also the highly technical winemaking going on here, and time spent in concrete. Just wow.

Vintage

Wine

Type

Color

Rating

$

This 98% Cabernet Franc from Casa de Viñas in the Livermore Valley was aged in 17.5% new French oak, 25% third-use Hungarian oak, and 67.5% neutral barrels. It’s a more subtle, refined expression of the variety, with sagebrush nuances, black currant, plum, and accents of new wood cedar. Medium-bodied, it shows zesty blood orange acidity and emerging notes of pine, mint, and eucalyptus that add an unexpected—but very welcome—freshness.

The 2022 Cabernet is a blend of 88% Cabernet Sauvignon, 6.85% Cabernet Franc, 2.4% Petit Verdot, 1.75% Malbec, and 1% Merlot, sourced from the Bavarian Lion Vineyard in Knights Valley, Sonoma County. Aged 18 months in 59% new French oak barrels, it’s a juicy, supple red with aromas of kirsch, plum, and subtle Asian spice. The palate is soft and satiny, unfolding with ripe red and dark fruit tones before finishing with an easy, graceful burst of blue fruit brightness. The Ehret family has been farming their Knights Valley estate for three generations, reserving their best fruit since 2005 for their own small production (handled in the cellar by winemaker Erin Green).

The Cabernet is aged 18 months in 55% new French oak and 10% concrete. This is an ultra-delicious wine in 2023, with super expressive aromatics: dark berry fruit, tobacco spice, violet, graphite, and little pops of blue fruit. There’s a cocoa-powder tannin quality on the rich, layered palate, along with a chalky mineral complexity that drives the lengthy finish, all fueled by bright baking-spice notes and wild herbs. Sourced from SJ Ranch, Del Rio, Oliver, Farrow, and Aperture Estate. That freshness factor in this wine is partly the vintage, but also the highly technical winemaking going on here, and time spent in concrete. Just wow.

Vintage

Wine

Type

Rating

$

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