About the Wine  

One of what Washington Post wine columnist Dave McIntyre recently dubbed “California’s Class of 1972,” Silver Oak Winery helped define what California wine is today. Along with the other pioneering wineries that opened that year, including Caymus, Silver Oak has hit its 50th year, and in those 5 decades, its primary focus has been on one grape, Cabernet Sauvignon.

The winery, recognized by Wine Spectator as “one of California’s most iconic wine brands,” operates from two locations—one in Napa Valley’s Oakville and one in Sonoma's Alexander Valley. This is the winery’s Napa Valley wine, a terroir-driven Cab blended precisely with other Bordeaux varieties, Silver Oak’s signature way of crafting sublime California Cab from its Soda Canyon Ranch Vineyards with diverse volcanic soils. 

Head winemaker Nate Weis chooses to age his wines exclusively in American oak. He blends before barrel aging to allow the wine to be based on the inherent qualities of their vineyard components before any oak influences it. This results in a Cabernet that vintage after vintage is ready to drink upon release, but is also incredibly ageable. You can open this today or in 2040 and have a quintessential Napa Cab experience. 

This precise blend of 80.8% Cabernet Sauvignon, 14.6% Merlot, 2.9% Petit Verdot, 1% Cabernet Franc, and 0.7% Malbec is a gorgeous ruby red with notes of blackberry, blueberry, spice, cedar, and coffee. Plush with integrated tannins, it has a long finish that reminds you this is one of Napa’s finest. 

Aging: 24 months in American oak from the winery’s own cooperage.

Tasting Notes: 100% Cabernet Sauvignon. See Critical Reviews for detailed tasting notes.

Reviews

This is a big upgrade in finesse and clarity to such a popular, premium Cabernet from Napa. It shows lots of blackberry, tar, cedar, and oak-tree aromas that follow through to a full yet toned palate of fine, integrated tannins and a vivid finish. Owner David Duncan explained that the American oak they use in the wine for aging now comes 100% from their own barrel-making facilities, which tones down the vanilla character in the wine. Really impressive and delicious. It’s a joy to drink now, but can age. ~96 James Suckling.

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