Ratings & Tasting Notes:

99 points — The Wine Independent (Lisa Perrotti-Brown MW, June 2022)
Deep garnet-purple in colour, sashaying out with gorgeous blackcurrant preserves, wild blueberries and Morello cherries, plus hints of roses, fragrant earth, allspice and violets with dark chocolate. Full-bodied, rich and seductive, with achingly velvety tannins and a laser-precise backbone of acidity, finishing with epic length and seductive fragrance. She records a blend of 91% Cabernet Sauvignon and 9% Merlot drawn from across the valley, and 5,100 cases produced. Drinking window 2022 to 2045.

98+ points — Jeb Dunnuck (December 2021)
Pure, classic California notes of crème de cassis, spicy oak, chalky minerality, graphite and spring flowers, from fruit sourced across multiple mountain AVAs in the valley. Full-bodied and powerful on the palate, with a deep, rich mid-palate, beautiful tannins, notable acidity and what Dunnuck calls a great, great finish. Another brilliant wine from Carpenter in his view, able to offer pleasure today while evolving for twenty to twenty-five years or more.

98 points — James Suckling (April 2022)
So much crushed lead pencil, tile and dried flowers, together with blackberries and brambleberries. Full-bodied, with round, polished tannins — layered and delicious, closing on black olive and graphite. Suckling describes a potpourri of Napa Cabernet character that takes the palate on a tour of the region’s sites, Howell Mountain, Mount Veeder, Spring Mountain, Atlas Peak, Stags Leap, Yountville and St Helena among them. Precision and polish throughout. Drinkable now, but better to hold.

97 points — Decanter (June 2022)
Heady aromas of beautiful brown spices, raspberry, boysenberry, leather and tobacco, with nuances of smoky clove, crushed wild herbs and cinnamon. More of the same unfolds on the palate, framed by burly tannins with grit and finishing with intense pops of red and violet florals. A tremendously poised red with plenty of vivacity and complexity in youth that will only deepen with time in bottle.

Cult Wines International Notes:

Cardinale was established in 1982 and has been made since 2002 by Chris Carpenter, who also directs Lokoya, La Jota and Mt Brave. It is a mountain wine first and foremost: rather than express a single estate, Cardinale is assembled each year from more than a dozen hillside sites across Napa Valley — Howell Mountain, Mount Veeder, Spring Mountain, Atlas Peak and Stags Leap among them — with the blend rebuilt from scratch every vintage according to what the year gives. Roughly 80% of the fruit comes from mountain vineyards and the balance from the valley floor, and the house style is built on structure, altitude and precision rather than the opulence common to its price tier.

2019 was an excellent Napa vintage, with a long, temperate growing season that delivered ripeness with acidity intact. The blend is 91% Cabernet Sauvignon and 9% Merlot, the Merlot drawn from a single Howell Mountain block, with 5,100 cases produced. Deep garnet-purple, the wine offers blackcurrant preserves, wild blueberry, Morello cherry, raspberry and boysenberry over roses, violets, dried flowers, crushed lead pencil, graphite, chalky minerality, allspice, cinnamon, smoky clove, leather, tobacco, black olive and dark chocolate. Full-bodied and powerful, with a deep mid-palate, velvety but gritty tannins and a laser-precise acid backbone, closing with real length and fragrance. Approachable now, and built to evolve for two decades and more.

Bottle Size:

750 mL

Storage History:

Always stored on its side in a climate-controlled cellar.

Condition:

Outstanding condition.

Please note: The condition of the bottle you will receive is accurately reflected by the one shown in the images.