10/12/2026
"One of my favorite mid-range Napa Cabernet Sauvignons." Eric Asimov from the The New York Times shares his thoughts on our 2022 Estate Cabernet Sauvignon:
In my w**e-drinking circles, it’s become all too common to hear people say, “I almost never drink cabernet sauvignon,” or “I’m not much of a Bordeaux drinker.” As somebody who got into w**e in the 1980s, as cabernet and Bordeaux, cabernet’s ancestral home, were ascending to the heights of their modern popularity, this seems bizarre. Yet, it’s also understandable. So, today, I want to stand up for cabernet sauvignon....Good cabernet is far more versatile, with food and with time, than the perceptions would have it.
It’s true that high-end Bordeaux and many Napa cabs are tannic when young and require aging 10 years or more. But many midrange w**es can be consumed far younger.... I love a medium-bodied cabernet w**e or Bordeaux with a roast chicken. For me, the best cabernets are savory rather than sweet fruited, often with floral aromas. They are not fruit bombs but “great drinks,” as Hugh Johnson once said, describing the appeal of Bordeaux to me....I haven’t addressed a huge issue yet: prices. No getting around it, many good cabernets and Bordeaux are expensive.
Three of my favorite midrange Napa cabs, those from Matthiasson, Smith-Madrone and Frog’s Leap, retail for around $75, a splurge for many people.
smithmadrone.com
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