2011 Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon Horizontal

“Sanguine and brooding in dense layers of juicy black fruit, leather and tobacco, this is classic Napa Valley Cabernet with an elegance at its core, that’s also seamless, complex and age-worthy. From relatively cooler sites in Oak Knoll and Mount Veeder, and a cooler year too, this vintage sings for this producer, showing balance and power in equal measure. *Wine Enthusiast Top 100 of 2015, Editors' Choice* (VB)” (04/2015)

“Solidly built, deep in keen Cabernet fruit and decked out with the lavish oak that its maker most always favors, this very rich, impressively concentrated working beats the poor odds of the vintage and succeeds handsomely in a harvest where not nearly enough do. It is full and fleshy and slightly supple in feel with a good spine of comparatively fine tannins, and, if already showy and not a brooding wine that needs to be hidden away for a decade or two, it has enormous potential and is guaranteed to reward six to eight years of keeping.” (04/2014)

“Initially hard-edged, with herb, dill and cedar notes joining the dark berry, espresso and cigar box flavors. Broad-shouldered, yet with a measure of grace and finesse, ending clean, pure and focused. (JL)” (10/2014)

“The 2011 Cabernet Sauvignon Estate Old Vine is a standout. The Old Vine presents layers of blue/purplish fruit in a surprisingly pliant, juicy style for the year. There are no hard edges or angular contours in this expressive, resonant Cabernet Sauvignon. Like all of the David Arthur wines, the 2011 Old Vine is relatively delicate by Napa Valley standards. Layers of fruit build to the creamy, generous finish. The Old Vine is 87% Cabernet Sauvignon and 13% Petit Verdot. (AG)” (11/2013)