Inglenook Cabernet Sauvignon 2015
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Suckling
James - Decanter
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Robert
Product Details
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Winemaker Notes
A classic expression of Inglenook’s terroir, the 2015 Cabernet Sauvignon opens with a complex aromatic burst of cassis, black cherry, vanilla and anise. Supple, ripe tannins enhance a velvety palate, which boasts tremendous depth. Even more striking is the extravagant array of macerated black fruits which extends through the lingering finish.
Professional Ratings
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Wine Enthusiast
This bottling reflects the past several years' fine-tuning the winery's vision in the vineyard and in the cellar. Including small amounts of Cabernet Franc, Petit Verdot, Merlot and Malbec, it's a rounded, concentrated wine that expresses the vintage with ripe, grippy tannins that beg for further resolution. Blackberry, clove and leather flavors rise to the fore. Cellar through 2035.
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James Suckling
Aromas of blackberry, chocolate and chili follow through to a full body, tight and chewy tannins and a linear finish. Shows polish and class. A blend of 92% cabernet sauvignon, 6% cabernet franc, 2% merlot. Very well done for the vintage. Try in 2020 but already attractive.
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Decanter
Owner Francis Ford Coppola has renamed his Cask Cabernet - second wine to Rubicon - and it's a fine drink for the money in the rarified air of Napa. Winemaker Chris Phelps used all five Bordeaux red grapes from seven vineyard blocks, and the wine is loaded with savoury spice, rich dark fruits and silky tannins. Cellar Rubicon and drink this while you wait. 50% new French oak.
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
Blended of 88% Cabernet Sauvignon, 6% Cabernet Franc, 5% Petit Verdot and 1% Merlot, the 2015 Cabernet Sauvignon is deep garnet-purple colored and features a boisterous nose of blueberry pie, blackcurrant cordial and Black Forest cake with suggestions of chocolate mint, potpourri, baking spices and cedar chest. Full-bodied and concentrated in the mouth, it has a solid frame of chewy tannins and just enough freshness to lift the densely packed fruit to a long finish.
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A decade later, Francis Ford Coppola purchased 1,500 acres of this historic property and revived Captain Niebaum's fine winemaking tradition. In 1995, Niebaum-Coppola acquired the remainder of the property and restored the Inglenook Estate to its original dimensions.
A noble variety bestowed with both power and concentration, Cabernet Sauvignon enjoys success all over the globe, its best examples showing potential to age beautifully for decades. Cabernet Sauvignon flourishes in Bordeaux's Medoc where it is often blended with Merlot and smaller amounts of some combination of Cabernet Franc, Malbecand Petit Verdot. In the Napa Valley, ‘Cab’ is responsible for some of the world’s most prestigious, age-worthy and sought-after “cult” wines. Somm Secret—DNA profiling in 1997 revealed that Cabernet Sauvignon was born from a spontaneous crossing of Cabernet Franc and Sauvignon Blanc in 17th century southwest France.
The Rutherford sub-region of Napa Valley centers on the town of Rutherford and covers some of Napa Valley’s finest vineyard real estate, spanning from the Mayacamas in the west, to the Vaca Mountains on the other side of the valley.
Inside of the Rutherford AVA, bordering the Mayacamas, is a stretch of uplands called the Rutherford Bench. (These bench lands technically run the length of Oakville as well). Mountain runoff creates deep, well-drained, alluvial soils on the bench, giving vine roots plenty of reason to permeate deep into the ground. The result is wine with great structure and complexity.
Rutherford Cabernet Sauvingons and Bordeaux Blends garner substantial attention for their enticing fragrances of dusty earth and dried herbs, broad and juicy mid-palates and lush and fine-grained tannins. The sub-appellation claims some of the valley’s most prized vineyards today, namely Caymus, Rubicon and Beckstoffer Georges III.
It is also home to Napa’s most influential and historic personalities. Thomas Rutherford, responsible for the appellation's name, made serious investments here in grape growing and wine production between the years of 1850 to 1880. Gustave Niebaum purchased a large swath of land and completed his winery in 1887, calling it “Inglenook.” Today this remains the oldest bonded winery in California. Georges Latour founded Beaulieu Vineyard in 1900, making it the oldest continuous winery in the state. Latour also hired the famous enologist, André Tchelistcheff, a man credited for single-handedly defining the modern Napa winemaking style.