Lastly, the 2021 Cabernet Sauvignon Dancing Bear Ranch comes from a stunning estate vineyard on Howell Mountain with the plantings dating back to 1999. A blend of 90% Cabernet Sauvignon, 8% Merlot, and a splash of Cabernet Franc, aged in 59% new oak, this beauty reminds me of a great Saint-Julien (Leoville Barton?) with its incredible purity and regal, structured style. Crème de cassis, lead pencil, violets, chalky minerality, and chocolaty oak all emerge on the nose, and it hits the palate with medium to full-bodied richness, a layered, multi-dimensional mouthfeel, ripe yet perfectly integrated tannins, and a gorgeous finish. It needs air if drinking any time soon and will ideally be given 4-6 years in the cellar. This beauty will have three decades of overall longevity.
Toasted oak and graphite aromas meet dark chocolate, black pepper and tar flavors in this robust, full-bodied and lavishly oaked wine. Firm tannins support ripe black fruits and an array of char, pencil shavings and clove accents.
The 2019 Cabernet Sauvignon Dancing Bear Ranch includes 5% Merlot. Scents of pine bark, cedar, cherries and faint herbal notes appear on the nose, while the wine is medium to full-bodied in the mouth, ripe and concentrated, even a touch creamy on the mid-palate, then long and mouthwatering on the finish. Reasonably complex and concentrated, with an appealing texture, this is a relatively charming wine for Howell Mountain, approachable in its youth.
Well-packed, with some zesty loganberry and mulberry fruit flavors mixed with a sleek cassis note, all framed by a robust apple wood frame. Shows a long tarry streak on the finish, as the vibrant fruit stretches out with it. Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot. Best from 2024 through 2035. 959 cases made.
Beautiful aromatics of camphor, new leather, dried herbs, and both red and black fruits give way to a full-bodied Cabernet with integrated oak, perfect balance, and silky tannins. Bravo!