2004 Cabernet Sauvignon Diamond Mountain

The 2004 Cabernet Sauvignon Diamond Mountain, which comes from the Wallis vineyard, shows terrific fruit intensity, oodles of creme de cassis, incense, a touch of white chocolate and coffee bean, cinnamon and clove-like spices, sensational blackberry and black currant fruit with some licorice and subtle background smoky oak. This beauty has wonderfully integrated sweet tannin and its opulence and lushness suggest drinking over the next 10-15 years. One of the great gems of the Jackson family wine empire, these three wines can generally be counted on to be among the very best produced in Napa year in and year out. Chris Carpenter has been the long-time winemaker, and these are all 100% Cabernet Sauvignons aged in almost all new French oak. They come from three vineyards that have totally different microclimates. The Diamond Mountain site in the northwestern sector of Napa Valley; the Howell Mountain site, which is the Keyes vineyard high on the eastern Vaca Mountain chain; and the Veeder Peak vineyard located on the Mayacamas mountain range on the western edge of Napa. These are all gorgeously proportioned, full-bodied, brilliant expressions of Napa Cabernet Sauvignon. In many ways, these wines, at least for the last decade, have been true first-growths of Napa Valley. Tel. (707) 948-1968