2014 Mayacamas Cabernet Sauvignon Golden Hill

The 2014 Cabernet Sauvignon Golden Hill emerges from a single block on the estate planted with 100% Cabernet Sauvignon. Just as impressive from bottle as it was from barrel, the 2014 possesses remarkable finesse and stunning beauty. The Golden Hill has a level of mid-palate depth and resonance that distinguishes it from the straight Mayacamas Cabernet. A vivid wine with breathtaking depth and complexity, the 2014 is shaping up to be one of the wines of the vintage. In this tasting, it is utterly thrilling from the first taste.

The 2014 Cabernet Sauvignon Golden Hill emerges from a dry-farmed, south-facing parcel planted with 30 year-old vines. Tasted from barrel, the 2014 is silky, nuanced and super-expressive, with striking density and power. The flavors are bright, precise and beautifully focused throughout. Stylistically, the Golden Hill is a bit sweeter and plusher than is the norm here, but the Mayacamas style is very much in evidence. Like all of the Mayacamas Cabernets, the 2014 Golden Hill will spend a total of three years in oak; two in cask and a third in barrique. This is a hugely promising wine from Mayacamas.

The 2014 Cabernet Sauvignon Golden Hill is every bit as impressive as it was when I first tasted it a few years ago. Pure Cabernet Sauvignon on this block yields a decidedly savory, mineral mountain Cabernet. Dried herbs, tobacco, leather, iron, gravel and game are front and center, while fruit is pushed more into the background. Next to the straight Cabernet, the Golden Hill is decidedly more backward.