2019 | Colgin Cellars | Cariad Red

A bevy of dark fruit flavors like blackberry, cherry, and black currant are woven together with generous notes of earth and spice. Commanding aromatics make way to reveal a wine loaded with the succulence of a tender cut of meat. Finely polished tannins melt across the palate as dark chocolate and herbal notes of mint build into the finish.

Reviews:

• Wine Advocate: Cariad is Colgin’s stunning expression of David Abreu’s Madrona Ranch vineyard, where the oldest plot is now 36 years old. Even more Cabernet Franc went into the blend this year, giving the wine a captivating brightness. This 2019 simply shimmers! Composed of 62% Cabernet Sauvignon, 25% Cabernet Franc, 5% Merlot and 7% Petit Verdot, the deep purple-black colored 2019 Cariad opens with wonderfully fragrant, earthy scents of dusty soil, iron ore and crushed rocks, over a core of black raspberries, warm cassis, red roses and juicy black plums, plus hints of pencil shavings and bouquet garni. Full-bodied, the palate features a rock-solid backbone of firm, grainy tannins and loads of minerally sparks with beautiful freshness, finishing very long and savory.

• James Suckling: Fabulous aromas of forest flowers, currants and tobacco. Turns to tile and stone with some iron. Opulent, yet fresh. Fine, powdery tannins spread across the palate and show lots of blackberry, blueberry and conifer undertones. Iodine, too. A solid and layered wine. Try this after 2026.

Producer Information

Colgin Cellars is one of California's so-called "cult" wineries, founded by Ann Colgin in 1992. She produced some of her early vintages from vineyards at the foot of the Howell Mountains in Napa Valley, before purchasing land on the Tychson Hill and hiring famed viticulturalist David Abreu to plant her vineyards. Today Colgin produces wines that are mostly based on Cabernet Sauvignon and regularly score 100-point ratings from Robert Parker. Colgin produces wines from three different areas of St Helena: Tychson Hill Vineyard, Cariad Vineyards and the IX estate vineyards, with the latter bordering the Colgin winery. The Tychson Hill Vineyards were originally planted in 1881 by the first female vintner in Napa, Josephine Tychson. The original vines were pulled during Prohibition and, in 1997, Colgin replanted the vineyards with a mixture of Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot. The vines are grown on volcanic soils on the slopes of the Tychson Hill. The Tychson Hill Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon vintages 2002, 2012 – and most recently, the 2013 – have perfect scores from Robert Parker's The Wine Advocate, with the critic comparing the wines to a hypothetical blend of the finest Pauillac and Napa Valley wines. The Cariad Vineyards encompass three main plots – the Madrona Ranch, Howell Mountain and Thorevilos – and are owned and managed by David Abreu. The Cariad Red Wine is produced from a blend of grapes from these three vineyards, usually Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Cabernet Franc. The IX Estate vineyards, also known as "the number nine estate", form an eight-hectare (20-acre) plot on a broad slope of the St Helena hill. The vines are spread over both low- and high-altitude plots atop of rich volcanic soils. The IX Estate red wine comes from these vines and is a Bordeaux blend of Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot. The 2002, 2006, 2007, 2010 and 2013 vintages have been awarded 100-point ratings by Robert Parker, with the remaining vintages all scoring 90 or more. The IX Estate Syrah is also made from grapes grown in these estate vineyards. The vines are from cuttings that have their origins in the Northern Rhône, more specifically from the Côte Rotie and Hermitage regions. The wines are all aged in 100-percent new oak, the barrels of which are from Taransaud, in the Cognac region of France.

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