Firestone Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon Santa Ynez Valley

Poor storage, cannot judge

A nice merlot at a decent price. Not overly complex but it brought enough fruit and tannins to make it very enjoyable. We had many wines at Thanksgiving and this and the Reserve sister bottle held their own.

Consumed this with a large group, fortunately it was a large bottle to match. Pleasantly surprised, and it was a hit with the family. I'm not a Sideways merlot bigot, but they do tend to be a bit one-dimensional, especially the less expensive ones. This was an exception -- although not terribly complex, well-balanced and nice fruit.

i was surprised by this $14 merlot. deep nose of black cherries that transfer to the palate, where there are some plum, spice and toast notes, medium acidity and refined tannins. more complexity and balance than most merlots at this price point. i think the age has helped refine this as well. quite nice. 13.5% alcohol with 4% cabernet sauvignon and 2% cabernet franc. 20 months in french oak.

Great value wine, supprised at how good it was.

No detailed notes but took this over to a family dinner and it was very well received. Very fruit forward and lively. An overall crowd pleaser.

very good with some vanilla on the finish, will buy some more

Good complexity on the nose of cherries. Very good mouthfill, fruity and excellent mid-pallate and very nice acidity that pushes a pleasant finish. An extra sentimental point for being from the Santa Ynez Valley. Great effort.

Nose of cherry and blackcurrant. Slightly thin and not complex initially. Allowed for extended decanting and complexity increased along with more fruit (strawberry in particular) while any taste of alchohol dissapeared. Nice finish with length. Needs more cellar time.