2011 Cabernet Sauvignon Beckstoffer To Kalon Vineyard

Dark medium ruby. Good lift to the slightly inky aromas of blackberry, licorice, black pepper, mint and spices. Fairly dense but a bit hard-edged, with the flavors of blue and black fruits, peppery herbs, licorice, violet and bitter chocolate showing limited give. Nicely concentrated but a touch vegetal, conveying an impression of almost peppery acidity and finishing with firm-edged, slightly drying tannins and lingering notes of licorice and wet rock. This lighter-styled Cabernet is still awkward today: will it develop more sweetness and pliancy with additional bottle aging? Hobbs picked this fruit on October 19th, following a huge rainstorm on October 3 and a long period of unusually high humidity. He did heavy crop thinning, beginning in early July, in an attempt get the rest ripe, but the veraison still did not occur until late August. He ultimately got just 1.4 tons of fruit per acre (the lowest yield of all of the vintages I tasted in March), which he described as "still not completely ripe." (14.7% alcohol; 3.65 pH; 6.0 g/l acidity)

Inky purple. Complex aromas of cassis, violet, black pepper and licorice. Sweet, densely packed and powerful, displaying good definition to its black fruit and bitter chocolate flavors. A smoky mineral element contributes energy and cut to the finish, which is firmed by solid, youthfully ungiving tannins. Like the Las Piedras bottling, this is a hard one to wrap your palate around right now.

Layers of blue/black fruit, cloves, mint, pine and new leather flesh out in the 2011 Cabernet Sauvignon Beckstoffer To Kalon Vineyard. All the elements fall into place in a wine that captures the essence of this famed site. White pepper and a hint of orange peel add an exotic flair on the sumptuous, nuanced finish. This is a fabulous showing.