Merryvale, Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon, Napa Valley

The wine still had medium- acidity and well integrated tannins. Fruit typical Napa cab, but muted by 19 years. The finish was terroir driven forest, floor and mushroom. Really too old and should have pulled this out 7 years ago. Showed well enough to get an 85 after 2 hours in the decanter. If you have one open NOW!!!!

2001 vintage

Delicious after 19 years. Perfect wine to pair with Beef Bourguignon.

2001 vintage

Too much brett.

2001 vintage

drinking beautifully right now

2003 vintage

Popped and poured; no formal notes. Tannins are soft and, while this bottle was showing its age, it was far from dead. I would start drinking up if you have any; these are in gentle decline.

2001 vintage

Still drinking well, also picked up pencil shavings on the nose along with past aromas of currant, spice, leather and smoke. Tannins structure still defined leading to lush, lingering finish.

2001 vintage

Still retains great fruit and well-structured tannins; a bit of acidity but a smooth finish.

2001 vintage

Decanted briefly. Classic cali cab, mostly resolved tannins. great balance of fruit and acid and tannin. Some spice and earthy notes in the background. Drinking great with some potential, although there's no harm in drinking it now. Very very good

2001 vintage

Brought this bottle from our cellar to enjoy with dinner at The Grey Plume. The Sommelier pulled the cork (perfect condition with a dark red kiss on the end) and I introduced myself to the wine. Gorgeous color, no visual signs of age with this bottle. What character. Beautiful nose; nice rich mouthfeel and supple tannins...decent acid. I felt that it needed to stretch its legs a bit though, so I asked for the decanter. After 45 minutes, we started …

2001 vintage

very oaky not bad but not great either

2001 vintage

Merryvale Cabernet Sauvignon Reserve Vertical Blind Tasting (5th Street Dinner Club) : Tasted single blind in a Merryvale vertical. Some slight bricking apparent.Fresh nose showing menthol, clove, and spice. On the palate, ripe and chewy with some fine, sweet tannins. Some plum, but not the offensively overripe kind. Finishes very clean, but a little bit on the short side. I correctly guessed that this was the 2001. My #1 of the flight and the group's #5.

2001 vintage

Excellent Napa Cab. Very light but very balanced.

2003 vintage

past - nose and residual indicated that it may have been a substantial wine.

2001 vintage

John Greg LB “the Row”… Still showing great, sleek and Oakville-y, lotsa currant, black fruit, leather and dust. Ripe and round, no hard edges. Great Napa cab.

2003 vintage

Whatever this wine had it's gone now though I doubt it had much to begin with. The best thing about this wine is it's fairly flat because what little profile it has does not integrate well... if at all. On the nose it's thick with beef jerky like smell with dry spices and cedar. In the mouth the alcohol scorches your tongue there's a hint of pomegranate and sour cherries but you almost want to spit it out because of …

2001 vintage

Not much on the nose. Palate has plum, blackberry, and dark chocolate..tannins have become quite soft and the mouthfeel is lush. The fruit does seem to be fading a bit though...doesn't seem like this has much time left.

2003 vintage

Good enough for a steak at home wine. Lots of napa character with a good weight and texture. The finish is my favorite part with a nice grapey plum linger. Nothing monumental but satisfying nonetheless.

2001 vintage

Dinner Brenda and John the Row -- a Napa cab "like they used to be", real sleek and loaded with big earthy blueberry and dark chocolate. Yum!

2003 vintage

The good news is that this wine is very smooth and an easy drinker. However - it lacks any distinctive characteristics that would make it a memorable wine. This can be enjoyed by those that typically like lighter bodied red wines - but may disappoint those expecting the characteristic "backbone" that has come to be the trademark of really good Napa Cabernets.

2001 vintage

BBQ with Reveals (Our house) : Wow. Amazing wine. Had with sirloin and shrimp off the grill, roasted potatoes and salad. Deep purple color a- almost black. Amazing aromas of bluberries, vanilla, oak. Smooth mouth feel with a long finish. No bitterness. A great balance of tannins and fruit. Just a wonderful pairing with the dinner. C- 5 A - 13 F - 17 O - 8

2003 vintage

still had many years left on this. Very silky, elegant cab with currant, cedar and vanilla tones.

2001 vintage

The last bottle was better, with more assertive fruit. The best that could be said here is that this was pleasant enough to drink, if a bit simple. At its best there was a vague whiff of licorice. At the worst there is a green edge as well. Still smooth, no tannin. This is a lot better than other wines I have rated at 88 probably, but for a Napa cab it is an 88 at best I think. Ah, …

2001 vintage

Very smooth. Loads of cassis. Some oak and tannic structure. I was expecting nothing and got something, a pleasant surprise

2001 vintage

Consistent with past bottles this Cab has Eleant styled cab that has black currant, cassis, spice, coffee, smoke and leather on the nose. Soft nd supple iin the mouth with fine, grained tannins that deliver a long, lingering finish. Still drinking very well.

2001 vintage

I bought this off the wine list at the Inn at Hawkshead over the weekend during dinner. $58 on the list. Paired with a prime rib. Nice match. Notes of black cherry, beef blood, coffee and currant. Medium bodied. Not overly tannic but it did have a firm structure. 89-90 points.

2003 vintage

Not very well balanced. A lot of alcohol with very little fruit on the finish. A disappointing bottle.

2001 vintage

Good, but not as tannic as expected.

2003 vintage

I was very disappointed in this cab. we opened our magnum and decanted it an hour before dinner. the flavors were so light and muted, I would never guess this for a cab in a blind taste. uninteresting, no tannis. would not buy this again

2001 vintage

Yia Yia's Wichita Brenda -- Awesome Napa cab, loaded with bing cherry, licorice, espresso, asphalt, graphite, woodspice and blueberry ballpoint pen ink (!)

2003 vintage

Typical Merryvale - very drinkable but not exceptional.

2001 vintage

Very good value sub $40 Napa Cab. Rich and elegant cab for the price. Good depth and complexity with soft, round tannins and tons of black currant, cocan and oak. Lush mouthfeel and long, lingering finish.

2003 vintage

Paired nicely with steak and potato-turnip gratin. Not too earthy. Decanted. Opened up well.

2001 vintage

Really disliked this. Big fruit bomb with harsh tanins...got worse next day.

2001 vintage

Consumed with a Thanksgiving meal. Not as good as we expected., no depth of flavor.

2001 vintage

Nice cab nose, but firm, slightly bitter tannins on the palate really obscured the fruit. Improved over time, but just doesn't have the depth that the better 2001's have.

2001 vintage

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Merryvale, Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon, Napa Valley

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