Cardinale Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon | 2018 | 750 ml.

WE98 Wine Enthusiast 3/1/2022

"Fantastic vintage, fantastic winemaking and the addition of 10% Merlot make for a magical experience of structure and graceful complexity in this always impressive, collectible wine. Saline, dried herb, cedar, pencil and crushed rock provide a landscape of savory earthiness, while a hint of rich red fruit remains subtle and youthful in grippy intensity. Enjoy best from 2028–2038. (Virginie Boone)" (98 pts.)

JS97 JamesSuckling.com Thursday, February 3, 2022

"Aromas of blackberries, plums and spice with some pine needles and fresh mushrooms. Full-bodied with very fine, round tannins and a juicy sophistication and flavorful profile. Dark and thought-provoking. So approachable. 90% cabernet sauvignon and 10% merlot. Drink or hold." (97 pts.)

SP94 Wine Spectator Oct 31, 2021

"Ripe and dense, but sleek and polished, with red and black licorice notes framing the core of lush plum sauce, blackberry compote and boysenberry reduction flavors. A licorice edge struts on the finish too. A showy style that should have lots of fans. Drink now through 2036. 5,000 cases made. (James Molesworth)" (94 pts.)

JD98+ Jeb Dunnuck 1/27/2021

"The 2018 Cabernet Sauvignon is based on a blend of 90% Cabernet Sauvignon and 10% Merlot that spent 22 months in 81% new French oak. It’s a wonderfully complete, borderline perfect wine that shows the class of this estate as well as the vintage, revealing a seamless, full-bodied style that carries lots of blackcurrant, graphite, lead pencil, and tobacco aromatics, a deep, layered mid-palate, ultra-fine tannins, and flawless balance. As with most of Chris’s 2018s, it’s a wine that builds slowly with time in the glass, offering a layered, singular character. It’s a gorgeous 2018 that can be drunk today with ample pleasure, but it will ideally be given 4–6 years of bottle age, at which point it should evolve gracefully for 30–40 years. (Jeb Dunnuck)" (98+ pts.)

RP98 Robert Parker’s The Wine Advocate 14th Jan 2021

"Composed of 90% Cabernet Sauvignon and 10% Merlot, the 2018 Cardinale was aged in French oak barrels for 22 months, 81% new. Deep garnet-purple colored, it prances out of the glass with gregarious notions of warm cassis, black cherries and wild blueberries, followed by emerging earth scents with a tobacco and garrigue undercurrent. Medium to full-bodied, gracefully styled and refreshing, the vibrant black and blue-fruited palate offers a wonderfully fine-grained texture and bags of energy, finishing long with a skip in its step. 5,107 cases were made. (Lisa Perrotti-Brown)" (98 pts.)