Cave Cuvée Howell Mountain Red Blend

Ohhhhh....big and dark, seductive- dense without being aggressive could age much longer. Complex. Loved.

This was served blind. Dark core with some bricking around the edges. A touch of aged funk at first, then it shows dates, dark cocoa, mocha and blackberries. It’s got dusty tannins all over, but the finish was quite powerful and almost chalky. The mid palate was a medley of older baking spices, red plum, baked black cherries and old graham cracker. This held up in the decanter for a while and while it’s not getting better, I imagine it will hold here for a few years. I called this early 2000s mountain cab heavy blend from O’Shaughnessy. Thanks @Jason Jones

Fun Friday evening with great wines.

Checks all my boxes. I love Howell Mtn fruit. Everything about it is dark and ripe, yet powerful and smooth. Iron fist in a velvet glove. Sweet baking spices accompanied by blue fruit, blackberries, dark cocoa and nutmeg on the nose. Soft with a powerful core of dark fruit. Rich, but not boozy or flabby. Drinking fantastic right now with an hour decant.

Amazing to drink this wine 12 years after helping the master Sean Capiaux make it! Still young and intense, great concentration, long finish. Inky soy sauce and still full of raspberry and blueberry fruit...

Heck of a 3rd Friday to kick off the holidays!

Dense! Inky. Hoisin sauce, blackberry preserve, peppercorn on the nose. Turned dark and savory, with licorice and baked berry pie. Young in every aspect but also upside in every aspect.

Intense and focussed with a smoky and slightly peaty nose. Dark cherry and earthy blueberry. Sweet tobacco. Seek this out. Outstanding, with 10-15 years ahead at least.

Can’t miss Howell MT. Nose is to die for. Fruit forward & a crowd pleaser!

When the boss hands you a bottle of one of your favorite wines just because it’s Friday afternoon... you try to rib him, but in the end it’s just... 🙏👏👊💯🍷

The 2012 O’Shaughnessy Cabernet Sauvignon Howell Mountain is 79% of the named varietal with a mix of 6% Malbec, 4% Merlot, 4% St Macaire, 3% Petit Verdot, 2% Cab Franc, and 2% Carmenere.

Impressively virile aromatics of blackberry, cassis, 72% cacao, dark roast coffee, and a blend of masculine spice, including clove, cinnamon, and nutmeg. The palate features notable concentration set against a soft cushion of savory herbs and minerality that helps frame the decadent fruit through its lengthy finish. Excellent mountain fruit that’s still an extraordinary value in terms of Napa pricing. 95+

First wine for Chops Grille House. Decanted for five hours and definitely helped with the heat. Deep and dark ruby red with a touch of garnet. Layered nose with volcanic ash, dark raspberries, oak, dark cocoa and dark spices. Medium plus tannins (7/10) and full bodied. Lush and rich palate with red mountain berries, dark sweet spices, a bit dusty and a little anise. Long and lingering finish. Drink till 2027.

Fantastic depth. Full of barrel and ripe fruit. EXACTLY what is want out of a wine of this caliber. Superb.