2007 The Ranch Cabernet Sauvignon

The 2007 Cabernet Sauvignon The Ranch (90% Cabernet Sauvignon and the rest Merlot, Cabernet Franc, and Petit Verdot) is sensational. Dense ruby/purple-hued with notes of cassis, licorice, chocolate, cedar, and coffee, it is a long, rich, flamboyant, exuberant effort whose minerality/burning ember component in the finish gives the wine considerable definition. This full-bodied offering is a classic Napa Cabernet Sauvignon combined with a finesse and minerality that is unusual in California. It should drink well for 20-30 years. The following notes confirm what I wrote last year about this somewhat under-the-radar winery. Snowden produces just under 2,000 cases of extraordinary wine from their 23 acres of hillside vineyards on the eastern side of Napa, above the Auberge du Soleil. Proprietor Scott Snowden and his daughter, Diane (whose permanent home is in Burgundy), along with consultant David Ramey have fashioned superb reds along with a delicious, French-inspired Sauvignon Blanc. For Napa Cabernets, Snowden’s wines are relatively great bargains for their quality. Tel. and Fax (707) 963-4292

Deep ruby. Dark berries, licorice, chocolate, minerals, smoke and violet pastille on the sexy nose. Dense and sweet, with an exotic spicy oak character to the creamy flavors of dark berries and mocha. A very broad, tactile and deep cabernet that finishes with rich, sweet tannins, noteworthy persistence, and a strong impression of soil.