1997 Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley
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Tasting notes
(13.2% alcohol): A bit darker in the middle than the Kronos bottling, showing more ruby. Aromas of black fruits, menthol and mocha plus a hint of sweet butter. Elegant and smooth on entry, then tighter and more youthful in the middle palate than the Kronos bottling, displaying better retention of its dark fruit flavors. Here the acidity is also more successfully integrated and the wine's firm spine of ripe tannins gives the rising finish lovely lingering perfume. An excellent vintage for this bottling, still with terrific verve to its dark berry fruit.
Critic scores
Jancis Robinson MW
Stephen Tanzer, Vinous
More reviews and scores
The deep crimson colour (impressive for a wine this old) is perhaps a little let down by the not-so-thrilling nose. Very slightly overripe. (JR)
Ruby-red. Medicinal aromas of black cherry, licorice, violet and herbs. Penetrating but hard-edged, and quite dominated by its structure. Still rather folded in on itself. I find the tannins distinctly tough for the year. Perhaps in an awkward stage today.
About the producer
Cathy Corison is one of Napa’s leading lights – a matriarch of the region who crafts defiantly elegant Cabernet Sauvignon from her old vines on the benchland between Rutherford and St Helena. These refined, long-ageing wines are some of Napa’s most impressive.