Paradigm, Estate Cabernet Sauvignon, Oakville

Opened up with bright garnet. No brick. Beautifully ripened black fruit with shape. This is a wine of two halves. Lovely bouquet, and silky full palate of black fruit. However the finish disappoints. Drying out on the back palate, and what remains is an awkward puckering of the mouth.

2008 vintage

A bit of menthol and tobacco with a crushed blackberry core. Tannins smooth and velvety with a nice viscosity. A bit of graphite on finish. Drinking very well but I would finish in the next 2 years.

2008 vintage

Past prime. Musty nose, sour and astringent.

2008 vintage

2 hours into this bottle. Decanted just in case there was sediment. Very little was present, if any. Clear dark ruby with clear rim. Very little sign of age. Nose of menthol, tobacco, licorice, cocoa and blackberry cobbler. Palate of cassis, blueberry, tobacco, dusty tannin, juicy acidity, medium body and beautiful balance. Finish is evolving and complex ending with pencil lead. I'd say this is holding strong at this point. 93.

2008 vintage

Magnum. Decanted half the bottle for a little bit. Took a little to open up. Nose had a lot of oak but nice cherry fruit too. Extremely refined and smooth. Medium plus depth. Classic Napa in my mind. Decent finish too.

2008 vintage

I think it is almost been 8 years since I have come back to this one. I will tell you that the nose on this wine was funky. FUN-KEE. FUON-KOEY. I almost kind of thought there was some cork taint of some type here. It did not appear to affect the palate. I sort of live this alone for 20 to 30 minutes, and glad I did. When I came back to it, a lot of this funk had blown …

2008 vintage

Seems a bit closed down right now. Better night 2 but would continue to hold at the moment.

2008 vintage

Tasting through some really great bottles this month... What a find the 2008 Paradigm turned out to be. Rich deep purple color. Great nose typical of Oakville with dark fruit, leather and tar. Just enough bottle age for my liking. Decadent full mouthfeel and tastes of black currants, vanilla and cocoa. Beautifully chewy and delicious. Lingering finish... Nothing overdone. Nothing missing.

2008 vintage

Plum, dark berry, and chocolate. Drinking really well.

2008 vintage

Beautiful wine right now and just coming into its own. Ripe black cherries, blackberries, and plums on the fruit profile. Wonderful creamy texture of milk chocolate, toasty oak, and subtle earth and spice notes on the mid-palate. Smooth tannins at this point, good acidity, and long finish. Heidi Barrett strikes again!

2008 vintage

This wine was well worth the wait!

2008 vintage

A beautiful wine with mostly blueberry notes at the start, mid palette and finish. Tannic finish but worth holding for a few more years as I think these will subside.

2008 vintage

Great earth tones, easy earth. Aged well, easy on the tannins and easy, smooth finish. Small herbal tones

2008 vintage

A thoroughly enjoyable quintessential Napa effort although I would call this more medium bodied than some, but lovely and balanced. Some black fruit, oak, and a touch of metallic or mineral note which was quite pleasing with the fruit. Heidi Barrett knows her stuff.

2008 vintage

Decanted for 3.5 hours. This wine really opened up. Fantastic!! Smooth.

2008 vintage

Fantastic! Had the 2009 months ago and it wasn't great, so I didn't have high hopes for this one. Pleasantly surprised. Second best Paradigm behind the 2006.

2008 vintage

Still young, strong fruit, needs a lot of air.

2008 vintage

What you would expect from a great producer like Paradigm...needs some time in the decanter, maybe 1–2 hours...

2008 vintage

Quick decanting which continued while we consumed the bottle over the course of an hour. Gorgeous deep color and nice nose immediately impressed the group. Great fruit and sweet tannins. This tasted like the perfect timing for this bottle. Clearly a mistake to have burned through so many bottles years earlier.

2008 vintage

Good stuff. Mineral nose, with hints of cherries, vanilla and oak on the nose. Touch of oak, slight tannins, with cola, cherry vanilla and hint of cinnamon and iron on the palate. Beat out 2007 Kobalt for WOTN.

2008 vintage

Christmas with hens

2008 vintage

Black cherry, blackberry and plum fruit with a creamy texture throughout. Also, has some milk chocolate flavor, nice balance, with smooth tannins on the end, long finish. Good wine.

2008 vintage

This was absolutely delicious. Great fruit and structure completed integrated the alcohol. Wonderful experience.

2008 vintage

Benchmark Oakville cab in this price range IMHO. Clear ruby with sediment. Decant and aerated for 1 hour. Nose not as expressive as the taste. Dense dark fruits highlighted with raspberry and good acidity. Nice oak but not overwhelming. Well blended and developed now. Improved from last bottle we drank 6 months ago. Can still go at least five years.

2008 vintage

So elegant and polished, showing a dense ruby/purple color, generous scents of black cherries, plums, milk chocolate, fancy oak, and the perfect amount of roasted ripeness. The palate is layered, well sculpted, with plump, juicy black and blue fruit, a fine backbone, perfect concentration, and tremendous focus through the crushed rock finish. Delicious now but will age with grace.

2008 vintage

Are you sure?

Paradigm, Estate Cabernet Sauvignon, Oakville

Vintages

No vintages

Community Reviews