TN's '01 Brookdale Napa, CAUS Cab

This one was new to me. It was a thank-you gift for our King's Day Celebration in 2004. Brookdale Vineyards 2001 Cabernet Sauvignon, Napa, CA-USA. With one year in my cellar, I decided to break it out for some Kobe "burgers," on a rare "at-home" Saturday night. According to Michael Seitz, Viticulturist & Vintner, "... my farming philosophy is simple: keep crop size low, practice sustainable agriculture and maintain well-balanced vineyards. I have crafted this limited production wine that allows my work to completely express itself. Please enjoy. Cases produced 550." From their Web site, www.brookdalewines. com, it seems that the 2000 vintage was"from among five different Napa Valley growing appellations (Stags Leap, Yountville, Oakville, Howell Mountain and Pope Valley). We use 100% French Oak Barrels which we age the wine in for approximately 19 months." I'm not sure what percentage of the different AVA's was for the 2001, or how the cooperage might have changed, as they only talked of the 2000. The wine's price is listed as US$52.00. I do not know, yet, if they ship to AZ, but will soon find out.

In the glbutt, this was a thick Cab, with opaque dark purple and a garnet meniscus with a faint clear rim. The initial nose was dark sweet cherry, with other black fruit. It was not decanted and poured a bit above my cellar temp, ~ 62 F. In a few moments, blackberries and current come into the nose. The mouthfeel is pure silk, but big silk! Very smooth tannins are present, but not as heavy as I had anticipated. Big fruit forward. This is a heavily extracted Cab. There is a hint of a sour note. I cannot attribute it to any normal high -acid flavor profile, like lemon, lime, etc. and only note it as a sensation, rather than part of the flavor. The acid and smooth tannins do give a bit of a pucker, however. The finish is medium-long, and there is definite cedarjuniper on the finish. (Now I wish I'd done some crushed juniper berries for an au jus over the Kobe burgers!) Concentration is the best descriptor that I can find for this big, though not too tannic Cab. In conclusion, I'd place this into any Zin-drinker's shopping cart, and expect that he-she would really enjoy it.

Obviously, this was a bit of a surprise, and I'll have to find the gift list and share the TN's with my benefactor. I've asked for shipping info to AZ, as I hope to lay down some of this one.

Hunt