2005 Cakebread Cabernet Sauvignon Benchland Select
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Tasting notes
(15.5% alcohol): Full medium ruby. Full-blown aromas of currant, woodsmoke, fig and sandalwood show some porty oxidative character. The figgy ripeness carries through on the palate, with the rather aggressive dark berry and dark chocolate finishing with a dusty, green tannic edge. An impression of elevated alcohol accentuates the wine's porty qualities. Leaves behind a hint of raisined fruit.
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Average Score
Robert Parker
Stephen Tanzer, Vinous
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Cakebread Cellars have been on a roll, and looking back at the 2005s makes me realize just how impressive their wines have been. The 2005 Cabernet Sauvignon Benchland Select is a stunner. From the gravelly, loamy soils of the western benchlands in Napa Valley, it was aged 21 months in French oak, but the oak is not overdone, and the result is a wine with gorgeous blueberry, blackberry and cassis fruit, licorice and white chocolate notes, supple tannins, a medium to full-bodied opulence, and an undeniably seductive feeling at its plateau of maturity, where it should hold for another decade. This is a great effort from the Cakebread family to drink over the next decade.