Caymus, Special Selection Cabernet Sauvignon, Napa Valley

Out of magnum, Cellar Tracker says this is 6 years past due, I disagree. Perhaps the larger format helped. If you are a Caymus fan, this is everything you expect. Wish I had another.

2004 vintage

Decanted 90 minutes. A great cab with highly concentrated fruit: cassis, black raspberry, plum with elements of glycerin and spice. Nice mouthfeel with soft tannins and long satisfying finish. Paired with grilled Wagyu ribeye steaks.

2004 vintage

Much better than my notes from 8 years ago; guess aging a good cab does make a difference. Everything you expect from high end Cal Cabs, good flavors, depth, complexity, nice nose, etc. Tannins still present but not overwhelming so balance good. No way (properly stored) this is 3 years over the hill.

2007 vintage

Nose is not very expressive. Thick with full mouthfeel and focused flavors of cooked and black fruit. Somewhat jammy. Acid minus. You can keep it for another decade, but don't know if it develops to something better.

2007 vintage

Interesting side-by-side of the 87 Caymus SS with the Shafer HS, two one-time icons of Napa Valley. The Caymus leads with nice vibrant acidity and it has shed a bit of its exuberant fruit it carried in the foreground for its first 30 years of life. Leans more to red fruit with raspberries and cranberries. Notes of loam and tar on the finish. Lighter weight. Drinking the remainder of the bottle a week later after the initial Coravin sample. This …

1987 vintage

Silky smooth very complex fruity with minimal tannins. Fantastic wine, but probably just starting to enter its decline.

2007 vintage

Decanted for one hour and this 2004 Caymus caught me completely off guard in the best way. Drinking far better than expected and thoroughly enjoyable. Feels like it is right at its prime, so no need to overthink it, just drink up. Cheers, enjoy life, the cellar is for drinking.

2004 vintage

Fruit was very upfront at the opening then just became a very consistent wine of no tannins and nice aged Cabernet. Went great with the steaks and potatoes we had for dinner. Nothing disappointing about this wine and nothing amazing either. Would have drank maybe 5 plus years earlier for better enjoyment.

2005 vintage

Opened this too late. Still drinkable but flat at start. Still strong lead of leather and black cherry but more chewy than I like.

2007 vintage

This is a bottle from a current shipment (previous note was of a bottle received a year ago). Similar notes to last bottle. A big, hedonistic, Napa Cab. Well-balanced with tons of stuffing, even if not to my style. Not surprising we purchsed these at the time, but have our tastes changed over the years.

2005 vintage

Cassis, leather, bacon fat. Smells like cherry coke. Great structure and lively tannins.

2007 vintage

First of four bottles. This is a big, ripe Napa Cabernet Sauvignon, as I expected. Beautiful fig, plum, and blackberry notes, with no noticable oak. Low in acidity. Quite opulent. Best enjoyed on its own, without food. No rush at all, as there's plenty of fruit to go around.

2005 vintage

Drinking so beautifully right now. Don’t think there is a rush to open. Classic Napa.

2005 vintage

Dark fruit nose, still had nice structure and muted dark fruit came through. Very delicious.

2004 vintage

In my cellar since release. My penultimate bottle. Decanted at 1pm and tasted from 5-10pm. Any oak that some of the pro’s have criticized in this wine is now fully integrated and I wasn’t perceptive of any excess, and I am somewhat critical of it. The wine was bright garnet with almost no bricking…somewhat miraculously. The depth of flavor was quite attractive, especially the melange of red berries. Lots of secondary flavors as well, some tobacco and chocolate (oak?), but …

1987 vintage

Classic Napa Cabernet with dense blackberry, vanilla, and chocolate notes. Full-bodied with velvety tannins and a long finish.

2005 vintage

Just a smooth delight.

2007 vintage

Much appreciation for this 18 year old gem. Dense, dark fruit. cassis, leather and anise. Tannins fully integrated. Really beautiful. Can still go another 5 years

2007 vintage

91-92 rating. Decanted. Bette the next day. A bit of roughness ; slight alcohol sensation. Good berry , moderate tannin but no “big wet dog” taste. Perhaps it can age longer?

2007 vintage

37 - 38 years old. Still mostly deep red though starting toward brick color. Still a nice nose but definitely fading. After 30 minutes from opening some dark fruit started to come through. Overall a very pleasant experience. Won’t last much longer.

1987 vintage

Still drinking well

1987 vintage

2hr decent. Really refined and elegant. Does not have any of the fat current vintages have. Primarily fruit but maintains great balance with acidity and structure. Did not come off as almost 20yrs old. Red fruit cassis tobacco very light oak. Great showing.

2005 vintage

Cracked for an anniversary. The double decade old cork tore in half on the way out- even with the Ah-So as extractor. It was an initial concern, but nothing a quick pour couldn’t fix, and the cork bits were out. This is a loud vin with a blatantly black-fruits nose. An exquisitely rich body. We bet the finish will last minutes. The opacity screams louder than a midnight Turkish coffee. A number of comments have mentioned earth and tobacco. Frankly, …

2004 vintage

OMG. One of the best. Layers of excellence, depth and balance. Tannins on point. Jerry and Bonnie

2007 vintage

Drinking beautifully

2005 vintage

Fantastic bouquet of black cherry with lots of spices and tobacco. Exotic spices continue into the palate complementing layers of black fruits. The structure is soft and fully integrated. Undoubtedly, it is a special wine with strong character and unique personality.

2004 vintage

Wish I had more.

1987 vintage

Holding up nicely but likely on the way past its prime. Some blackberry notes with smoke and some herbaceous notes I would not have expected from this wine. More pleasant than I would have expected.

2007 vintage

Quite mature but beautifully balanced and a great length

1987 vintage

WCC 2004 California Cab Blind Tasting (Fort Orange Club, Albany, NY) : [Double decanted all at 1:00 PM, recorked at 5:00 PM.] Huge black fruit nose. Rich, complex. Still young, but no harm in drinking it now.

2004 vintage

WCC 2004 California Cab Blind Tasting (Fort Orange Club, Albany, NY) : Wasn't a fan of this. There's a core of very rich, primary black fruit tinged with vanilla and a higher-toned green herbal note on the nose that I like, which adds freshness. But the palate feels foursquare; burly and extracted with a lot of tannin and a hot, alcoholic finish.

2004 vintage

The wine exhibits brilliance, although the initial sip reveals a slight prominence of its 15% alcohol by volume. Setting aside this observation, it boasts remarkable depth, volume, and ripeness, epitomizing a luxuriously rich and full-bodied palate. The fruit presents itself as dark and brooding, yet notably balanced after an ample decanting period. There is no urgency to consume this wine; in fact, I would estimate it to be approximately 2-3 years away from reaching its peak drinking window.

2004 vintage

Frank with Dawn and Frank CCF

1987 vintage

Still in a great drinking period

2005 vintage

Tuesday night blinds : [Tasted Double Blind] This pours inky dark in the glass with no bricking. The nose is of extremely dense fruit centered on blueberry jam. The palate is rounded and polished, with notable RS. Acid keep things fresh, but you also can't help but wonder about acidulation at this ripeness level. I guessed napa valley floor cabernet from a modernist from 2007, so I got that right. Not really my style.

2007 vintage

Still complex and delicious with black fruit, graphite and taking on some forrest floor earthiness. Tannins are incredibly soft, but still there.

2007 vintage

1 hour in decanter. Spectacular. Spiciness, eucalyptus, black fruit, plumps, some earthy notes. Enormous power, well integrated though prominent tannins, superb freshness. Mind blowing. 96/97. This wine, in its youth, confirms, as Bordeaux lover, my long existing interest in high level Californian wines. I will start drinking the older vintages of this great wine.

2004 vintage

After an hour and a half of air still tightly wound with tannin. Began to dissipate after 2 hours Opened up and wonderful. Still has time.

2007 vintage

Fruits on the nose Dark purple color no browning Long sweet finish This has a lot of life

2005 vintage

Pop an pour Wow will decanter the bottle for 2 hours but wow

2007 vintage

Past its prime, a touch of robitussin which is a shame because I distinctly remember how great this once was. Decanted and got better after an hour then settled south and got worse.

1987 vintage

decanted for 3 hours. well rounded and integrated. blueberry, boysenberry fruits with black licorice. long finish. paired nicely with reverse seared rib-eye.

2007 vintage

Pnp. First time I've had this wine, purchased in 2010. Seems like the blackberry toned fruit is a bit diminished but held up by the tannic structure. Full bodied, mostly smooth but a bit of alcoholic heat. Improved with time in the glass and paired well with a t-bone steak.

2007 vintage

Just excellent from start to finish. Super smooth, plenty of dark blue fruits with rich but well integrated vanilla/oak/mocha tones. Enough tannic structure to support the fruit but wouldn’t want this to recede much more. First sip out of bottle was great, decanted part of the bottle but not really necessary. Could have been a pop and pour - opened up fine I bathe glass and didn’t change a lot over 2+ hours. Bought for $125 in 2009-2010 - was …

2007 vintage

delish!!!!! So rich and flavorful. I just wish i had more bottles!

2007 vintage

Wow! This wine is having a moment. Opened just for the hell of it on a Saturday night with Filet Mignon. Decanted for an hour. Absolutely stunning - especially with an extra 30 min in the glass. Pronounced aromas of fresh black cherry, black plum, blackberry and hints of mint and eucalyptus. Notes of chocolate and toast from oak. Tertiary aromas galore - dried fruit, tobacco and cigar box and earth/forest floor. The wine feel like it’s at its ideal …

2004 vintage

This wine has held up extremely well. Had this last in 2019, and it was and still is very bold on the nose and palate. Fruit notes stand out and wine has a nice dark color. Looking forward to trying it again in a few years!

1987 vintage

Ripe red lush fruits with creamy hedonistic flavors. Yummy sweetness and a sense of purity. Just enough acidity to keep it fresh, but lacking nuance and detail. Nice with a steak, no rush to drink up, but likely at peak.

2004 vintage

Simply amazing! Just a beautiful Napa Cab.

2007 vintage

Pre 1990 Cali Cab + 1981 Birthday Surprise! (Cowford Chophouse) : Drank side by side with the '86. What surprised me the most with the two was how alike the wines were. I think both were good growing years but I remember many years ago doing a Dunn tasting and while I liked both of those wines a lot they had some changes. Here the wines were more fruit forward in style. All blueberry and blackberry and all of that. …

1987 vintage

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Caymus, Special Selection Cabernet Sauvignon, Napa Valley

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