Ontogeny Oakville Red Wine

High-pitched, hugely extracted and textured cab. Not for the faint of heart. But every now and then, we love it.

It is time for my #FridayCabernetfix.

Deep purple in color with a short purplish rim.

Beautiful nose with lots of chocolates and light earth notes.

Full-bodied and elegant with medium acidity.

Dry and very fruity on the palate with nice complexity.

Showing black currants, cooked plums, cedar, tobacco, vanilla, dried figs, raisins, licorice, light earth, peppercorn, cola, spices and dark chocolates.

Long finish with fine grained tannins and crushed peppercorn.

This is a gorgeous Cabernet Sauvignon based Bordeaux blend from Napa Valley. Big and bold. Spicy and tangy. Showing nice complexity at this point.

This 6 year old is drinking beautifully now. Rich yet elegant. Extracted and easy drinking. Well balanced and really delicious.

A beautiful surprise. I had the 2016 a few years ago, and this is drinking much better now. I did not expect it from the 2017 vintage.

Thank you Mike for sharing this with me.

Good right out of the bottle, and good by itself as a sipping wine. Robert Parker 93 points.

A blend of Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot.

15.2% alcohol by volume.

94 points.

$110.

Deep purple in color with a short purplish rim.

Beautiful nose with lots of chocolates and light earth notes.

Full-bodied and elegant with medium acidity.

Dry and very fruity on the palate with nice complexity.

Showing black currants, cooked plums, cedar, tobacco, vanilla, dried figs, raisins, licorice, light earth, peppercorn, cola, spices and dark chocolates.

Long finish with fine grained tannins and crushed peppercorn.

This is a gorgeous Cabernet Sauvignon based Bordeaux blend from Napa Valley. Big and bold. Spicy and tangy. Showing nice complexity at this point.

This 6 year old is drinking beautifully now. Rich yet elegant. Extracted and easy drinking. Well balanced and really delicious.

A beautiful surprise. I had the 2016 a few years ago, and this is drinking much better now. I did not expect it from the 2017 vintage.

Good right out of the bottle, and good by itself as a sipping wine. Robert Parker 93 points.

A blend of Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot.

15.2% alcohol by volume.

94 points.

$110.

This is a construction, but we don’t care. A much maligned vintage, but no signs of that here. Kudos Mr Bevan!

Time for a good #FridayCabernetfix. Here is a great one from Napa Valley.

Inky in color with a short purple rim.

Showing black fruits with cedar, earth, vanilla, licorice, tobacco, coke, chocolates, dark coffee, leather, spices and peppercorn.

Full bodied and smooth with medium acidity. Dry on the palate with nice balance and mouthfeel.

This is a delicious Bordeaux blend from Napa Valley. Complex and opulent, and might be too much for some.

Dark, rich and handsome. Very tasty now, although still young. Will be nice to revisit it in 10 years.

Robert Parker 95 points. Thank you Scott for sharing.

Good by itself or with food, like a big piece of steak.

A blend of 62% Cabernet Sauvignon, 19% Cabernet Franc, 15% Petit Verdot and 4% Merlot.

15.2% alcohol by volume.

93 points.

$120.

Drank 11/25/18. Tasting pour

Expressive nose of plums, ripe blackberry, and a hint of earth. Big palate of black fruit, and cherry. Seamless balance, with well integrated tannins. Long finish filled with black fruit.

4/23/8/5/4 + 50 = 94 pts

Inky purple. Strong floral notes of violets and lilacs accompanied by cassis, black cherries, and chocolate. Intense and sweet dark fruit on the palate with supple tannins. Blend of 65% Cabernet Sauvignon, 25% Petit Verdot, and 10% Cabernet Franc. Very appealing entry to the Bevan lineup of Bordeaux style wines.

Birdie: You opened my last 2011 Bevan Ontogeny, didn’t you.
Me: Damn right I did.
Birdie: Woof you.

There is no issue at all with tasting the 2015 Ontogeny, Bevan's entry-level wine, after all the big guns. If anything, the tasting order simply shows what a great wine this. Expansive aromatics lead into a core of rich, pliant fruit in this sweeping, dramatic wine. Readers who don't want to splurge on the higher-priced offerings will do just fine with the Ontogeny. This is a tremendous showing. (Antonio Galloni, Vinous, March 2018)

You haven’t really lived until you’ve tasted Russell Bevan’s wine. His 2014 Ontogeny had me exclaiming “OH.... Daaaaayuuuum....” after my first sniff, and then again after each of the subsequent eight or ten sips with various and usually increasing changes in inflection. Blackberry compote drenched in crème de cassis accented with smoked brisket and white flowers. Tertiary notes of lavender, leather, a faint tinge of brett, and a little magic marker provide an exotic backdrop for a wine that exudes its own Napa style.