Voir Dire Diamond Mountain District Cabernet Sauvignon

Finally getting around to posting wines from my annual Napa trip from two weeks ago. Always goes by quick! Lots of fun new stops this year.

Theorem was one of our highlights last year, so we made sure a return visit was lined up this year. Base of Diamond Mtn with one of the most beautiful properties I’ve seen. Over the last 12 months, they’ve added a couple new wines (with more to come from Moon Mountain). TRB is the winemaker.

In the running for red wine of the trip. When visiting last year, I preferred the ‘14 (ripe, balanced, savory) over the ‘15 (more acidity, touch lighter, high toned)...this ‘13 takes the best of each and marries them. This is a classic high end TRB Cabernet from a stellar vintage. Truffles raspberries, candied black cherries, cocoa dusted mixed berry pie and graphite aromatics accompanied by sweet blueberries, freshly squeezed blackberries, toffee and espresso, baking spices, and fine grained tannins. Built like a tank. Superb.

I think this is my first 2015 Napa Cab but I just couldn’t wait any longer to open one after all the super positive feedback I’ve been hearing about this project involving @Isaac Pirolo and fellow trial attorney and owner, Jason Itkin. This is young but very open for business and boasts loads of intense radiant rich red fruit. The fruit dominates now and it’s delicious but there is still noticeable weight and pliant tannins. Very impressive stuff.

Day 4 in Napa in the books! Running a day behind on notes...Napa time runs slow AND fast!

This was spectacular, and I enjoyed this slightly over the ‘15. Very signature TRB notes on the nose with candied black cherry, touch of blueberry and ripe blackberries. More dark cocoa, creme de cassis & sweet vanilla pipe tobacco.

I didn’t get to spend as much time as I would have liked with their 2015 as we were running late to get to our next appointment. I also did not get to write notes on their new 16 Hawk’s Prey.

The 15 is very approachable vs. the 13 & 14. It is less concentrated than the 13 & 14. More fruity. The nose shows more withering florals and red fruits. Dark and slightly baked cherries. Strawberries, black cherries, black raspberries, plum, vanilla, cinnamon, whiffs of clove, leather, limestone minerals, red cola, dry top soil, clay and bright red florals.

The body is full but, less full than the 13 & 14. Tannins softer and more velvety. As well, more bright red fruits. The acidity is also beautiful, it’s elegant and shows more bright red fruit in the finish.

I would have liked to spend a lot more time with their 2015 so I could have written more detailed notes. However, we simply ran out of time.

Photos of; their sloping hillside vineyard, beautiful fruit waiting to be harvested, immaculate stainless steel tank room and a lounge area in their barrel room.

The truth is… over the years, I've had the occasional fanciful thoughts where I imagined picking up and moving to wine country. Those dreams always seemed so impractical and, of course, it’s never the right time. So, when my favorite winery – Theorem Vineyards – whose wines are made by my favorite winemaker – Thomas Rivers Brown – approached ME about moving to Napa Valley to work for THEM, I fell off my chair. Fortunately, I was more prepared when they asked me to join their team as Vice President of Sales and Marketing; my only condition was a bottle of their 2012 Voir Dire Cabernet Sauvignon – their first born. I will be relocating to Napa Valley at the end of May.

As for that 2012, I believe 60 cases were produced. I previously tasted the 2013 and 2014, so the 2012 was the only released vintage I had not tasted. It’s immediately recognizable as Voir Dire with its ethereally dense and exotically potent perfume. Drenched in wild and savory blackberry, luscious crème de cassis, and the most flawless graphite that will make you understand why diamonds exist. The primary components of its flavor profile are so pure and exalted, and so much so, that I’m reminded how right the decision is. What makes this world class, though, is the mosaic backdrop of secondary flavors that comes across like some sort of haute couture tapestry – polished and refined, yet pure and exotic – a mélange of herbs, black licorice, iron, cedar, truffle, game, and leather. It’s very Thomas Rivers Brown, but the terroir is undeniable.

Day 4 in Napa in the books! Running a day behind on notes...Napa time runs slow AND fast!

Compared to the ‘14, more acidity here. It got a touch lighter on the palate with added spice, like rhubarb. I agree with the notes below that this seemed more red fruit dominant at this stage. Cherry cordial, roasted plum, dark cocoa dusted dates. These Theorem wines are wonderful.

The nose reveals less concentration and more red fruit than 13. Still ruby and beautiful. Deep, dark; blackberries, blue fruits, dark cherries, some baked strawberries, black raspberries with raspberries haunting the edges, black plum, plum, cigar, saddle-wood to cedar, anise, caramel, vanilla sky, dark chocolate, cinnamon, clove, nutmeg, some underbrush, crushed dry rocks. dark rich soil, black licorice, some asian spices, dark berry cola, with very dark red fresh & withering flowers, bright violets and beautiful lavender.

Big full body, not quite as big as their 13. The tannins are firm and grainy. More pronounced than the 13. The structure is again big as is the tension. The length incredible as is the balance. Deep, dark; blackberries, blue fruits, dark cherries, some baked strawberries, well extracted pomegranate & dry cranberries, black raspberries with raspberries haunting the edges, black plum & plum. Cigar, saddle-wood to cedar, anise, caramel, vanilla sky, dark chocolate, cinnamon, clove, nutmeg, some underbrush, crushed dry rocks, dark rich soil, black licorice, some asian spices, steeped tea, dark berry cola, with very dark red fresh & withering flowers, bright violets and beautiful lavender. The wine is seem-less wire to wire. The acidity even better than the 13. More balance now than the 13 but, both will be outstanding wine. The well polished finish shows more tannins and balance of fruit and earth than the 13. Its is also very persistent and more feminine than the 13.

The 2014 just missed 97 as I lean a little conservative with young wines. However, this 14 may end up being better in the long run than the 13 but, both wines are outstanding in their own right and I bought both. The 13 will definitely out cellar the 14 but, both will age effortlessly for two decades plus.

Photos of; the recently renovated Victorian style house on the property, our personalized printed tasting order with cheese pairings, tasting set up and their sloping hillside Estate vineyard.

Theorem Voir Dire is a relatively newer wine made by Thomas Rivers Brown or as some of us refer to as TRB. TRB makes or has made a number of wines which include; Chiarello, Outpost, Schrader, Aston Estate, Boars’ View, Maybach, Rivers-Marie, Seaver Vineyards, Hestan, Casa Piena, Saunter, Wallis, Black Sears, Harris Estate, Kinsella, Jones Family, Travail, Stone the Crows, Pulido-Walker, Post Parade, Riverain, Shibumi Knoll, Hobel, Revana, Ampère, 4 Winds, the Grade, Round Pond, Senses, Mending Wall, Sodhani, Vermeil, Gemstone, and QTR. TRB has made at least 25 💯 point wines in his career.

If you love a big, bold, brooding, luxurious, gorgeous, sexy Cabernet, as Val Kilmer said, in “Tombstone” “I’m your huckleberry”, (2013 Voir Dire).

Its color is dark and well extracted. The nose reveals, rich, ruby lush, fruits of; blackberries, black raspberries, concentrated blueberries, black plum, plum, dark cherries and an array of purple fruits. Vanilla, cinnamon, clove, mocha powder, dark chocolate, mellow dark spice, black licorice to anise, sweet tarriness, saddle-wood, rich, dark soil, dry crushed rock powder, limestone volcanic minerals, nice subtle herbaceous notes, very dark fresh & withering dark florals, violets and lavender.

The body is big, bold lush, ruby, and deeply concentrated with big dark, tarry, sticky, well rounded, meaty tannins. The ripe, lush, rich fruits are beautiful and well extracted. The structure is big as is the tension. It has long length and beautiful balance. Ripe; blackberries, black raspberries, concentrated blueberries, black plum, plum, dark cherries and an array of purple fruits. Vanilla, cinnamon, clove, mocha powder, dark chocolate, caramel, mellow dark spice, black licorice to anise, sweet tarriness, saddle-wood, rich, dark soil, dry finely crushed rock powder, limestone volcanic minerals, nice subtle herbaceous notes with very dark fresh & withering florals, violets and lavender. The acidity is round and nicely done. The long, elegant, beautiful, richly concentrated finish is superb and it persists for minutes.

It is through @Isaac Pirolo who has recently become their VP of Sales & Marketing, I became familiar with their wines and thank him for arranging our visit.

Photos of; Theorem’s Estate vines, Winemaker-Thomas Rivers Brown, Owners-Kisha and Jason Itkin and the Victorian house they renovated on the property.

Beautiful black fruits accented by red berries. Earth tones. Fresh mountain air. Incredibly bright acid. This wine was love at first sip for me. The 2013 and 2015 are also amazing but the 2014’s balance and indescribable spirit put it on another level for me.

So after swirling and sniffing and tasting and thinking, and then doing it again and again for an hour or two, only then, when it still gives you goosebumps and raises the hair on the back of your neck, do you know you've found a good one. Thomas Rivers Brown leaves his invisible fingerprints all over this. Ethereally dense, with a savoriness that is difficult to put into words. Vivid blackberry, rich cassis, and crushed graphite conduct a symphony of mocha, licorice, incense, spice, flowers, and iron with both precision and character. This is a glass you won't put down.