2001 Maya

Bright red-ruby to the rim. Purer on the nose than the varietal Cabernet Sauvignon bottling, with lovely violet lift to the deep aromas of blackberry, blueberry, black cherry, licorice, espresso and rocky minerality. Wonderfully suave, silky and sweet but not at all liqueur-like or over the top (both of the 2001 Dalla Valle wines weigh in at under 14% alcohol). Boasts outstanding finesse of texture and inner-mouth vibrancy. At once purer and more concentrated than the Cabernet Sauvignon bottling, with extra floral lift from the Cabernet Franc. Really stunningly rich, savory, rocky, structured wine with bags of life ahead of it. As much savory as sweet, this beauty finishes with tooth- and tongue-clenching but fully ripe tannins and subtle slowly building length. Incidentally, the 2002 version of this wine was the last vintage made entirely from the estate's original Cabernet Sauvignon and Cabernet Franc vines before they were replanted. With its dark berry intensity and strong impression of sappiness, this wine is still short of its peak. I've written in the past that this rocky, volcanic, west-facing hillside vineyard on the east side of Oakville, yields some of the world's finest Cabernet Franc after Saint-Emilion, and this wine is a prime example.

The 2001 Maya brings together many of the best elements of this site in a typical expression of the year. Black cherry, plum, smoke and tobacco all flesh out in a super-inviting wine with superb depth and tons of structure. The firm tannins will reward at least another decade of cellaring, although the super-ripe, opulent fruit is incredibly appealing today. The full-bodied, brooding finish is not lacking in either intensity or depth.