Tasting Notes

WA98

Production fell back to about 4,300 cases in 2001, which was a fabulous growing season in Napa Valley and from the get-go heralded as a profound vintage. Certainly Spottswoode hit all cylinders with its blend of 95% Cabernet Sauvignon and 5% Cabernet Franc, and the first in a series of wines from them that eclipsed 14% alcohol (this one is 14.1%). Still dense purple to the rim, the wine is a young adolescent, with beautiful floral notes intermixed with deep crème de cassis, blackberry and blueberry Hints of licorice and graphite also present in this full-bodied, multilayered, magnificent and majestic Cabernet Sauvignon that is shaping up to be a great classic. There is at least 25-30 years of tasty longevity left in this large-scale Spottswoode that still seems to have a vague resemblance to Château Margaux. Bravo!

V94

Good bright, dark red. Wonderfully complex, soil-driven scents of redcurrant, plum, coffee, mocha, nutty oak and malted milk balls; smells dense. At this point in our tasting, Beth Novak Milliken noted that the structure of early Spottswoode vintages was carried by acids and tannins, while this one is carried by its fruit. Utterly smooth, suave, refined wine with redcurrant, plum, black cherry and tobacco flavors given shape by perfectly integrated acidity. Finishes with harmonious tannins and lovely length. I like this!

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