Cabernet Sauvignon Reviews

JamesTheWineGuy video review, December 2014

Beautiful, polished wine

2011 Cabernet Sauvignon

Beautiful, sculpted, polished; an example of dry farming.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tUckPRFP0YU

Sacramento Bee, Mike Dunne, December 17, 2014

Rare combination of character, elegance and spirit in a wine, look no further

2010 Cabernet Sauvignon

For the rare combination of character, elegance and spirit in a wine, look no further than the Smith-Madrone Vineyards & Winery 2010 Napa Valley Spring Mountain District Cabernet Sauvignon ($45), a seamless take on the varietal distinguished by lively red-fruit flavors, an intriguing thread of herbalness, firm but unintimidating tannins and refreshingly crisp acidity. The cool 2010 vintage was challenging, but brothers Stu and Charles Smith have been tending vines high on Spring Mountain for more than four decades and have learned how to roll with whatever weather is dealt them.


http://www.sacbee.com/food-drink/wine/dunne-on-wine/article4522893.html

Jameson Fink, blog, December 14, 2014

Not a better Cab for under 50 bucks

2011 Cabernet Sauvignon

I am hard-pressed to think of a better Napa Cab for under 50 bucks. This bottle of Smith-Madrone is a testament to both site and winemaking. And I am quite particular about Cabernet, truth be told. I like it to show true Cabernet character, which I define as having notes of wonderful green things. Like olives, herbs, mint, eucalyptus. Now, I’m not saying it should taste like vegetables, but this is the side of Cabernet that, when leaned towards, gets me excited. This bottle drank wonderfully for three days, was not lacking in richness, and delivered P-L-E-A-S-U-R-E. Stuff this in your stocking or, to be safe, put a case under your tree and enjoy how it develops over the years. On my triple buy scale it gets a BUY BUY BUY.


http://jamesonfink.com/spring-mountain-cabernet-from-smith-madrone-the-perfect-gift/

St. Helena Star, Catherine Bugue, December 4, 2014

A great holiday wine...beautiful balance....

2011 Cabernet Sauvignon

You don’t make wine in the mountains because it is easier; you choose the mountain because you believe you can make great wine there. The Smith brothers understood that Spring Mountain was a special place and built their winery among the thick forest of Madrone and other trees at elevations up to 1,900 feet. They make deliciously crisp whites as well as structured reds. What they don’t do is make oak-soaked, overly extracted, high-octane wines. If you want jam in a glass, look elsewhere. The 2011 Cabernet Sauvignon is a great holiday wine — full of deep blackberry fruit on a firm but approachable palate. Its beautiful balance, with nice acidity, makes it a great pairing for any beef dish, stew or roast. The price tag, quite low for a top Napa Valley wine, leaves more money for holiday presents.


http://napavalleyregister.com/star/business/smith-madrone-cabernet-sauvignon-spring-mountain-district-napa-valley/article_ee0c05f4-63e9-5fc7-b6f5-6e88a059c412.html

Wine & Spirits Magazine, December 2014

92 points, Best Buy

2010 Cabernet Sauvignon

Included in Year’s Best Cabernet Sauvignon section: A traditional style of Napa Valley Cabernet, this harks back to an age before hangtime was a buzzword, when green herb flavors and firm tannins were in fashion. It’s restrained, linear, astringent in both oak and fruit tannins, earthy at its core. There’s a delicacy to the lasting red currant fruit. Taut and demanding as a young wine, this is built for patient cellaring.



Waka Waka Wine Reviews by Elaine Brown, October 21, 2014

Ultra mouth-watering length

2011 Cabernet Sauvignon

Of 6 Napa Valley Cabernets presented at Wine & Spirits Magazine’s Sommelier Scavenger Hunt, the most distinctive of the cabernets selected was the 2011 Smith-Madrone: it shows refreshing bell pepper aromatics, and ultra mouth-watering length.


http://wakawakawinereviews.com/2014/10/21/wine-spirits-inaugural-sommelier-scavenger-hunt-tasting/

The Gray Report, by Blake Gray, November 3, 2014

Terrific example of 2011 Napa Cabernet

2011 Cabernet Sauvignon

The Smith Madrone was one of the most impressive wines of the day, with garrigue-like notes of the native California flora on the rugged forests on Spring Mountain. The 2011 vintage in Napa will never score well with Parker et al, but I believe great Napa wines from 2011 will be the best wines in those wineries' cellars two decades from now, and this is a terrific example.


http://blog.wblakegray.com/2014/11/terroir-fight-napa-vs-anderson-valley.html

The Sommelier Files by Christopher Sawyer, October 29, 2011

A pure balanced wine

2011 Cabernet Sauvignon

Fresh-evergreen infused aromas of red and blue fruits, tar, tobacco, and earth. Deep flavors of ripe plum, blueberry, black raspberry, dark chocolate nibs, wild mountain herbs and forest floor; vibrant acidity; generous finish. Overall, a pure, balanced wine, and a testament to the natural splendor, rugged soils, high elevation, and steep slopes that are trademarks of the Spring Mountain District.


http://sawyersomm.com/?p=476

Wine & Spirits Magazine, October 2014

92 points, Best Buy

2010 Cabernet Sauvignon

A traditional style of Napa Valley Cabernet, this harks back to an age before hangtime was a buzzword, when green herb flavors and firm tannins were in fashion. It’s restrained, linear, astringent in both oak and fruit tannins, earthy at its core. There’s a delicacy to the lasting red currant fruit. Taut and demanding as a young wine, this is built for patient cellaring.



Jancis Robinson, October 2014

Very delicate and lively - lots of freshness

2010 Cabernet Sauvignon

From a steep reclaimed hillside on Spring Mountain with volcanic underpinning. Estate bottled. Healthy and herbal. Very delicate and lively. Lots of freshness. Still quite youthful. Tense and light as a feather. Very unlike the Napa norm. It was even better after 24 hours – a good sign.



American Winery Guide, Martin Redmond, August 2014

One of the best values in Napa Valley Cab

2009 Cabernet Sauvignon

Dark ruby color with promising black cherry, cassis, blackberry, cedarwood, and a hint of cacao aromas. On the palate, it's medium-bodied, and vibrant harmonious with penetrating black cherry, cassis, mixed black and blueberry flavors, and sweet, well-integrated tannins and a long finish. Blend of Cabernet Sauvignon 84%, Merlot 8% & Cabernet franc 8%. Aged 22 months in new American white oak barrels. One of the best values you'll find in Napa Valley Cab at $45! 


http://www.americanwineryguide.com/winery_reviews/smith-madrone-vineyards-and-winery/739/

St. Helena Star by Catherine Bogue, August 7, 2014

Wine of the  Week

2009 Cabernet Sauvignon

Throw a steak on the grill or braise short ribs, for this cab has plenty of blackberry, sage brush, and spice flavors. But the wine only clocks in at 13.9 percent alcohol; a flavorful option to the higher octane beasts still out there, despite the turning tide.


http://napavalleyregister.com/star/business/wine-of-the-week/article_99459706-dbef-50b4-8cfc-7818410e8757.html

The Fifty Best Tasting, July 2014

Lovely wood and opulent on the palate

2010 Cabernet Sauvignon

Silver Medal

Aroma: Grassy, green bell pepper, peppery, jalapeño, fruity, berries, vanilla, mixed flowers, spice, hay, leather, lovely oak.
Palate: Plums, mushroom, leather, tobacco, oak, creamy, lovely wood, opulent.
Finish: Cocoa, light white pepper, leather, tart, medium.


http://www.thefiftybest.com/wine/best_napa_valley_cabernet_sauvignon/

Adam Lechmere's blog Rot, May 2014

Superb

2009 Cabernet Sauvignon

A classic nose, blackcurrant and mint vibrating in the glass, then flavours that can only be described as Bordeaux-like, cassis and coffee, but with an additional layer of perfumed fruit that stamps it indelibly as Napa. High vineyards, long hot days and cool nights bring sharp acidity to the structure. Superb.


http://adamlechmere.blogspot.com/2014/05/scaffolding-and-bare-brickwork.html

Wine & Spirits Magazine, August 2014

90 points and Best Buy

2009 Cabernet Sauvignon

A substantial wine with mountain-grown intensity in its meaty, cherry-scented fruit, this is dominated by oak for now. The fruit grows more fragrant with air, but needs bottle age to supersede the wood. Powerful and gracious, this should develop well. 



Foxlow Restaurant

Plush and seductive

2009 Cabernet Sauvignon

Foxlow is a restaurant in London. Zeren Wilson describes the 2009 Cabernet Sauvignon on the wine list: Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon is a wonderful thing, but the opportunities to taste at the elegant end of the scale are rare. Hallelujah for the Smith brothers, whose estate in the prestigious Spring Mountain is planted on very steep slopes on the top of the mountain: the resulting grapes retain freshness which gives this wine’s great balance. Plush and seductive on the palate, dominated by cassis and black cherry, this is a great example of a restrained wine from a region better known for fruit bombs.


http://www.foxlow.co.uk/

JamesSuckling.com, May 15, 2014

90 points: Velvety tannins, stylish

2010 Cabernet Sauvignon

90 points: Lots of subtle mint and currant character here. Full body, velvety tannins and a soft, juicy finish. A stylish, almost traditional Napa Cabernet. 


http://www.jamessuckling.com/wine-tasting-notes/smith-madrone-napa-valley-spring-mountain-district-/32091/

June 3, 2014, Eatocracy by Ray Isle

Impressive focus and structure

2010 Cabernet Sauvignon

June 3, 2014, Eatocracy (CNN)

Here are some splurge-worthy suggestions from some of the world’s great wine regions. They’re a little pricey, but on the bright side, you could buy more than 5,000 bottles of any one of them for what you just paid to raise your newly minted graduate.
Charles and Stu Smith’s vineyards high up in the Spring Mountain District AVA create a polished Cabernet with impressive focus and structure. Drink it now, or keep it until child #2 graduates. Or #3. Or even #4. Seriously.


http://eatocracy.cnn.com/2014/06/03/commence-drinking-better-and-pricier-wine/

Financial Times, May 9, 2014, by Jancis Robinson

A wine of intrigue

2009 Cabernet Sauvignon

Something game-changing happened for California wine exports a few weeks ago. A cohort of British wine buyers who had previously associated California only with cheap and not very cheerful brands and unthinkably expensive and often exaggerated Chardonnay and Cabernet was exposed to something completely different. Not that the wines on show at an all-day event celebrating “The New California,” organised by London wine merchants Roberson, were bargains. But the wines themselves presented a completely different and refreshing face of America’s wine state: bone dry with nerve, tension, intrigue, geographical awareness, no more than 13.5 per cent alcohol and, in most cases, the promise of developing into something even more interesting. The day of tasting and presentations was named after a controversial new book by Jon Bonné, the wine editor of the San Francisco Chronicle, who led the talks.

Jancis’s picks: Particularly strongly recommended: Smith-Madrone Cabernet Sauvignon 2009 Napa Valley. 


http://www.ft.com/cms/s/2/564a3458-8829-11e3-8afa-00144feab7de.html#axzz31VjKGkN3

TheDailyMeal.com, April 25, 2014 by Roger Morris

Easy tannins

2009 Cabernet Sauvignon

At a time when we may be lured away for spring picnic rosés and chilled white sipping wines on the sun deck, it is also grilling time — and grilled meats with their charred fats and pink interiors love red wines.

2009 Smith Madrone Cabernet Sauvignon: A little rustic and traditional — neither a good nor bad judgment — with a somewhat lean structure. It has red cherry flavors, decided herbal notes, some licorice, and easy tannins. Pair with grilled ribs, pork or beef.


http://www.thedailymeal.com/red-wines-grilled-meats/42514

The Wine Enthusiast, April 2014

a place in the pantheon

2009 Cabernet Sauvignon

94 points, Cellar Selection: Smith-Madrone tends to fly under the radar for Napa Valley Cabernet, but discerning palates understand its place in the pantheon. Vintages aren’t always kind to this mountain fruit, but in 2009, the conditions were just right to produce a wine of immaculate structure. It has firm tannins and brisk acidity, and the flavors are classic, suggesting blackberries and cassis. As delicious as it is now, this will have no problem aging 10-15 years.



BiggerThanYourHead blog by Frederic Koeppel, March 29, 2014

Always one of Napa Valley’s best and most characterful cabernets

2009 Cabernet Sauvignon

Dark ruby color; rigorous structure with mountain roots but such a pretty surface, violets and lavender, cassis, plums and black cherries, note of licorice; stout, robust tannins and dusty oak bastions; walnut shell and underbrush; gets dustier and more austere but still scrumptious; lithic chambers of blueberries, sweet smoke, soy sauce and barbecue; iodine, iron, resonant acidity. Drink 2015 or ’16 through 2025 to ’30. Always one of Napa Valley’s best and most characterful cabernets. Excellent. About $45, representing Great Value for the Quality.


http://biggerthanyourhead.net/2014/03/29/weekend-wine-notes-six-excellent-reds/

Enofylz blog by Martin Redmond, March 26, 2014

2009 Cabernet Sauvignon

91 Points: dark ruby color with promising black cherry, cassis, blackberry, cedarwood, and a hint of cacao aromas. On the palate, it's medium-bodied, and vibrant harmonious with penetrating black cherry, cassis, mixed black and blueberry flavors, and sweet, well-integrated tannins. Long finish. Blend of Cabernet Sauvignon 84%, Merlot 8% & Cabernet franc 8%. 13.9% alcohol. Aged 22 months in new American white oak barrels. This is a wine that's drinking well now, but will continue to favorably evolve over the next 10-15 years.  And it's the best values you'll find in Cab at $45! 

All the wines were simply outstanding.  Highly recommended.  And I heartily recommend a visit too.  The property is amazing (with breathtaking views on clear days), the Smiths are gracious, and knowledgeable hosts.  A good time will be had!

2009 Cabernet Sauvignon


http://enofylzwineblog.com/2014/03/26/smith-madrone/

The Daily Meal, March 12, 2014, by Gabe Sasso

A wine of substance and refinement

2009 Cabernet Sauvignon

The Smith-Madrone 2009 Cabernet Sauvignon was made entirely from fruit sourced at the winery’s vineyard atop Spring Mountain. At the time of harvest, the vines had 37 years of age on them. In addition to cabernet sauvignon (84 percent), there is some merlot (8 percent), and cabernet franc (8 percent) blended in. Barrel aging took place over 22 months in a combination of new and once used French oak. They bottled 1,302 cases of this cabernet sauvignon and it has a suggested retail price of $45. Cassis and blackberry aromas fill the dark and somewhat brooding nose of this cabernet. The palate is loaded with deep and generous fruit flavors. Blackberry, cherry, and plum are of note. Bits of mocha and earth emerge on the substantial finish along with continued fruit. The firm and gripping tannins yield with some air, so if you’re going to drink it today I’d recommend 90 minutes or so in the decanter. One of the issues with some Napa cabernet is that they’re more like rocket fuel than wine these days. This isn’t a problem here. This is a wine of substance and refinement that you can easily pair with food or drink all by itself if you like. The Smith-Madrone cabernet is as good an example of genuine Napa cabernet as any you’ll find at irrespective of price. There’s quite a bit of great cabernet sauvignon in Napa Valley. But there isn’t one with the combination of quality and value that the Smith-Madrone cab represents year after year. At $45 it’s a steal. Most Napa cabernet at this level of quality and sophistication usually runs much closer to $100. That they have kept the price on this wine so reasonable is one of the many feathers in their cap.


http://www.thedailymeal.com/smith-madrone-vineyards-and-winery/31214

UpstateDowntownNY blog by Chris Matthews, March 10, 2014

Elegant

2009 Cabernet Sauvignon

A pretty briar fruit nose, vibrant structure and a fresh berry fruit palate, finishing clean and long. Elegant. Comparatively Old World.


http://upstatedowntownny.com/2014/03/10/cali-mountain-wines/
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