2013 Spottswoode "Family Estate" Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon

One of the most classic examples of Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon I could image is the 2013 Cabernet Sauvignon from Spottswoode and this blend of 88% Cabernet Sauvignon, 8% Cabernet Franc and 4% Petit Verdot is a truly heavenly, classic wine built for the ages. Offering beautiful notes of black and blue fruits, graphite, exotic spices, violets and spring flowers, with a touch of earthy, damp river rock-like minerality, it hits the palate with full-bodied richness, stunning purity of fruit, perfect balance, building tannin, and a great, great finish. While a number of 2013s have closed down at this point, this still offers beautiful freshness and purity, yet will ideally be given another 4-5 years of bottle age and enjoyed over the following 3-4 decades. Do you want a sure bet in awesome, age-worthy Cabernet from northern California? Buy this wine. 100 points (December 29, 2017) (12/2017)

Yields continued to increase in 2013, with just over 4,000 cases of wine from a blend of 88% Cabernet Sauvignon, 8% Cabernet Franc and 4% Petit Verdot. This is another killer effort from Spottswoode. Inky bluish purple to the rim, it has hints of violets intermixed with sweet foresty notes, blackcurrants, chocolate and a touch of subtle smoke and earth. It is dense, with higher acidity and more noticeable structure than the 2012, but is as concentrated, dense and promising. Some patience is warranted in 2013, and I would suggest waiting another 5-6 years before pulling the cork on one. It is a 50-year wine at the very minimum and a great classic. (RP) 99+ (8/2016)

Glorious blueberries, blackberries, violets, and hot stones. Cloves and other spices. Even sliced mushrooms. Full body, very firm tannins, and a persistent and savory finish. A tight and polished young Cabernet. (1/2016)

A truly monumental wine, the 2013 Cabernet Sauvignon is simply magnificent. A huge, energetic wine, the 2013 exudes richness, concentration and depth. Cool, mineral and savory notes meld into a core of intense dark fruit in a vertical, towering Cabernet Sauvignon endowed with superb purity and depth. This is the best showing yet from the 2013. (AG) 98+ (12/2016)

This remarkable wine from the famed family-farmed, organic estate impresses immediately in its depth of concentration and stately grace, imparting a wealth of rose-garden compost and wild truffle on the nose. Within the vibrant range of sensual flavor is salted caramel, black cherry and chocolate, alongside a twist of saddle and campfire coffee. Its grip of focused tannin suggests years of aging potential; enjoy best from 2023 to 2033. *Ranked #4 on Top 100 of 2017, Cellar Selection* (VB) (2/2017)

Saturated ruby to the rim. Classic young Spottswoode scents of cassis, boysenberry, black cherry, lavender and coffee bean. Wonderfully juicy but tightly wound, conveying a medicinal backward character to the flavors of dark fruits and musky cocoa powder. The tannins are huge and a bit chalky but not dry. This extremely primary, floral wine should be long-lived and should ultimately merit an even higher rating. Novak Milliken described the 2013 as the most tannic recent vintage for Spottswoode. (ST) 93+ (6/2016)

This is a meaty, intensely structured cabernet from the Novak family’s 40-acre vineyard in western St. Helena, farmed organically since 1985 (certified in 1992). The meatiness comes across in a spicy scent of fennel salumi, and a tannic structure that is rich and savory without being overly dense. The fruit itself is bright, with red notes and vegetal aspects of persimmon. Those elements meld in a complex young wine, with hints of the flavor detail waiting to emerge as it ages in bottle. (12/2016)

Top Five Wine of the Vintage: Nuances of clove, tar and graphite marry with aromas of crunchy dark fruit, introducing a firmly structured and intensely concentrated wine that displays striking cut and energy. This is one of the best young Spottswoodes of recent times, and one of the most vibrant, primary benchland Cabernet Sauvignons of the vintage – it’s also likely to be one of the most long-lived.