Wine Profiles: California Cabernet Sauvignon

Story & Photos by Steve Hiatt
Steve@tekcomputers.net

and Bob Dickey
wineguydotcom@yahoo.com

Every quarter, a group of wine aficionados that’s come to be known as Santa Barbara’s Wine Profilers taste wines. The bottles are provided by
the trio from Renegade Wines — Frank Crandell, Mark Howard and Stephen Wayne. They choose from their current selection, so if something catches your interest, you can find it. Mark puts them in numbered bags so we are not influenced by the label. All of the wines are of the same varietal or type. Often from the same region. This time it was California Cabernet Sauvignon.

Cabernet has reached icon status in California, especially Napa Cabs. Because of that, they tend to have similar characteristics: blockbuster, tannic…. Not always food friendly, but memorable. And expensive.

The Cabs we tasted this time though, while mostly Napa Valley, were gentle on the palate and wines you’d be happy to sip all evening long. The styles were similar and the scores were very close. The prices, however, were diverse: ranging from $25 to $135. Pleasantly, the most affordable was our favorite.

Since the beauty of wine is best revealed when paired with food, we hold these quarterly panels at Stella Mare’s Restaurant, a destination wine country cuisine haven nestled between downtown Montecito and famous East Beach. Restaurant manager Giovanni Corvino arranges for one of the quaint and elegant private dining rooms and selects foods that pair nicely with the chosen varietal.

For the first flight of three wines, he provided three dishes: Mussels in White Wine; Rabbit Satay and Pistachio Crusted Brie with a Chambord/Cassis drizzle. For the second flight, he provided Roasted Stuffed Quail and a Snail and Chanterelle Casserole. These items, off Stella Mare’s diverse menu, were wonderful matches to the rich wines before us.

The panel consisted of the three Renegade folks—Frank, Mark and Steve; wine writer Judy Willis; wine aficionado Steve Hiatt and Stella Mares restaurant manager Giovanni Corvino. And me. (This magazine’s publisher, Gabe Saglie, was traveling but will be back next quarter.) All the wines are from the 2003 vintage. All are currently available at Renegade Wines. Wine tastes are personal, but here are our observations.

1st Place Waterstone, Napa Valley

This wine was big bodied; good tannins yet soft; nicely balanced with hints of cherry, mocha,
raspberry and cassis.

$25.50 at Renegade Wines

2nd Place Shafer, Napa Valley

This was so closely scored, it was almost a tie for
first. There was some cherry and berry in the
aroma which also showed up in the taste with
some plum and a little spice. Nice, lingering
wood, smoke and Vanilla overtones with some heat
in the finish.

$51.50 at Renegade Wines

3rd Place Chateau la Grand Roche, Napa Valley

This was a rich wine with berry and dark cherry
aromas. The taste included mocha chocolate and
spice in a nice body with a lingering red fruit on
the finish; slightly hot.

$35 at Renegade Wines

4th Place Kathryn Kennedy, Santa Cruz

This had a lighter body but ripe
fruit—notably blueberry--cassis and spice. This was a soft, uncomplicated, balanced wine that went well with the Brie.

$135 at Renegade Wines

5th Place Stewart, Napa Valley

This was a jammy wine with plum and berry. It
was somewhat closed at first, but opened up nicely.
The finish was short and slightly alcoholic with
cola and sweet berry flavors.

$56 at Renegade Wines

6th Place Bugay Vineyard, Sonoma County

This was still a nice wine with a good berry/floral
aroma with hints of licorice. The taste included cassis,
and berries with a long finish, influenced by smooth
tannins and an oak finish, and with a slight heat.

$80 at Renegade Wines