Abeja Winery Cabernet Sauvignon 05 |
||
|
Avalon Notes: There's no need for a decanter. The Abeja Cabernet Sauvignon 05 shows off its big aromas of black fruit, espresso, milk chocolate, graham, and violet-infused smoke that carries through. Very supple and expressive Cabernet fruit, with a ripe black cherry and cassis core, and a little bubble of cherry candy that bursts just before the finish. Hints of graphite unite with perfectly-integrated toast and lingering, sweet black fruit. Once you try the 05 Abeja Cab, it won't stand a chance in your cellar! This is the best Cabernet John Abbot has made at Abeja-we can't wait for the 2005 Reserve. Winemaker Notes: Crafting a Cabernet with dark dense color, richness and complexity, and a bright fruitful nose is one thing. Combining that with elegance, finesse, and superb balance is quite another. In 2005, the growing season gave us every opportunity to accomplish both, and this Cabernet is a beautiful illustration of an exceptional vintage. It is absolutely complete, abundant, and balanced. Our own Heather Hill Vineyard fruit is blended with Bacchus, Dionysus, Wallula, Weinbau and a touch of Hedges Red Mountain. This wine has pretty aromas of ripe cherry, black briar berry, and a hint of fresh fig. Its sleek structure frames a layer of sweet cassis, mountain strawberry, and shaved chocolate. Wood spice and lustrous tannins are in perfect balance and lead to a magnificent finish. |
||
Detailed Info, Previous Vintage Notes, Reviews: |
Abeja 2004 Tasting Notes Avalon Notes: Intense aromas of black fruit and fresh ground coffee, with notes of ancho chili. Flavors of black plum and cassis, with bits of black raspberry that give way to dark and milk chocolate, graphite, tobacco leaf, and barrel spice on the finish. With super-fine tannins, great concentration, and balancing acidity, the Abeja Cab '04 should evolve excellently over the next decade. - Marcus On the nose it reminded me of chestnuts roasting at a cold winters day, full of deep dark coffee and a dark chocolate component on the finish. Nice complexity on the mid-palate. Cozy up with a rich Irish stew and brown bread or a more elegant cocoa nib and hazelnut crusted loin of venison. Embrace winter and stay inside with this wine. - Amy Abeja's Cab release is one of the most anticipated in the Pacific Northwest each year. John Abbott makes rich, complex, delicately balanced Cabernet Sauvignon that, while big, is also delicious, interesting, and cellarworthy. From the Winery I had hoped that the growing season of 2004 wasn't going to be as warm as it was in 2003. But I hadn't hoped for the other extreme, which was to start the year with a January cold spell that caused bud, cane, and trunk damage in our two estate vineyards. After these damaging temperatures, we were fortunate that not all of our estate fruit was lost. Additionally, we have built strong relationships with our growers, who grow fruit for us in other quality areas of Eastern Washington. Geographical diversity and strong working partnerships make it possible for us to produce exceptional Cabernet Sauvignon even from more difficult vintages. With the exception of the Walla Walla Valley portion of the blend, which usually makes up twentyfive to thirty-five percent of the total, the fruit sources are similar to the previous three vintages. Slightly over fifty percent comes from our friends at Sagemoor Farms and their Bacchus and Dionysus vineyards, thirty percent is grown on Red Mountain, and the balance is from the Wahluke Slope. From the beginning, at Abeja, a primary focus in our cellar has been evaluating how each of our vineyards responds to different barrel types and with the 2004 Cabernet, we have made a lot of progress pairing our vineyards with the best coopers. I am very proud of this wine and feel it is one of our best examples of classic Washington State Cabernet. It is opulent, powerful, and full-bodied, with great balance and those signature Abeja qualities of finesse, femininity, and continuity. A complex mosaic of aromatics, rich fruit, and spice enters your palate and continues with a smooth, seamless texture throughout, with an exceptional, long finish. It has everything we look for in a Cabernet from our region. Recently filling the freezer with really nice, grass-fed beef has rekindled my fondness for this meat. I recommend an extra-thick cut covered with mushrooms. Pascal Sauton of Carafe Restaurant in Portland, Oregon paired this wine with braised pork cheeks and green lentil salad, which was a perfect match. One last thought on beef: a simple patty on artisan bread (I like to shape the patty to the bread) with fresh greens is hard to beat. For this wine, the music pairings echo the food. I am thinking Charlie Pride's Burger and Fries or Jimmy Buffet's Cheese Burger in Paradise or Frank Zappa's Calling any Vegetable. We need dessert too, so how about Spinal Tap's Cups and Cakes. Enjoy the 2004 Cabernet and happy eating!John Abbott-Winemaker Abeja 2003 Cabernet Sauvignon Tasting notes Avalon notes: Abeja held back the 2003 Cabernet for an extra five months, pushing its November 2005 release date to March, 2006. The additional time in barrel and bottle has given the wine a more mature, integrated character at release.The 2003 Abeja Cabernet is 96% Cabernet Sauvignon, and 4% Merlot. The winemaker says: "...fragrances of plum, dark raspberry, and sweet vanilla. Cocoa and lightly roasted coffee mingle with hints of spice and cedar. A long finish is generous and engaging. It has an impeccable balance of integrated tannin, acidity, and alcohol that perfectly accompanies the meal and provides for excellent longevity in the cellar." An inviting nose of fresh roasted coffee and vanilla bean, with dark raspberry that carries through to the core of the wine. Blackberry and bits of plum intermingle with dark cocoa beans before the miles-long finish hits, with the very silky, lightly spicy tannins. The Abeja will benefit from a of couple years in the cellar and has great balance that will young when decanted. - Marcus Winemaker notes: The winemaker says: "...fragrances of plum, dark raspberry, and sweet vanilla. Cocoa and lightly roasted coffee mingle with hints of spice and cedar. A long finish is generous and engaging. It has an impeccable balance of integrated tannin, acidity, and alcohol that perfectly accompanies the meal and provides for excellent longevity in the cellar." This vintage of Cabernet Sauvignon is big and with layers of complexity that really start to show themselves with a little extra time in the glass. Initially, it is deep and mysterious and then opens to reveal fragrances of plum, dark raspberry, and sweet vanilla. Cocoa and lightly roasted coffee mingle with hints of spice and cedar. A long finish is generous and engaging. It has an impeccable balance of integrated tannin, acidity, and alcohol that perfectly accompanies the meal and provides for excellent longevity in the cellar.\ The 2003 vintage was unusually cool during the Spring, however Summer was very warm and the heat units increased dramatically. Fortunately, we received a week of cooler weather in the first part of September, which allowed the Cabernet Sauvignon to slow its rapid ripening trend and finish the season with some hang-time. The vintage was unique for us in that we had all the Chardonnay picked and through primary barrel fermentation, and the Merlot through primary fermentation and settling in barrel, before we ever picked a Cabernet Sauvignon grape. Even though it was a hot summer, the Cabernet was able to stay on the vine longer, and take advantage of the fall's cooler nights. Practices were the same in the winery, all the fruit was hand-picked, whole-cluster sorted, de-stemmed, and secondary sorted before going to the fermenter. Cold soaking before inoculation and maceration time after fermentations were longer to help flesh out tannins. Enjoy through 2020. Vintage: 2003Appellation: Columbia Valley Harvest Dates: September 19, 2003 - October 23, 2003 Varietal Composition: 96% Cabernet Sauvignon 4% Merlot Barrel Aging: 21 months Oak Composition: 100% French, medium toast 60% new/40% one & two year old Alcohol: 13.93 % PH: 3.73 TA: 0.57 g/100ml VA: 0.06 g/100ml R.S: 0.03 g/100ml Bottling Date: June 28-29, 2005 Release Date: March 2006 |
YOUR REVIEWS |
| |
|
|
Home | Site
Map | About
NW Wine | Shop
for Wine | Highest
Rated | Wine
Clubs | NW
Wine News | Search | View
Cart Reproduction
of any part of this site prohibited without permission. |
