Winery - Steven Kent
* Expert NoteJanuary 12, 2012
This Chard will go a long way to restoring the renown of this appellation—where Chardonnay was first grown in California. Rich in fruit, oak and lees, the wine has a distinguished mouthfeel that’s steely and firm, and a long, lush finish.
0 out of 0 people thought this note was helpful.
* Expert NoteJanuary 12, 2012
There’s a beautiful wine in here, but it’s buried under tannins. Also, the fruit is all primary blackberry, blueberry, raspberry and cherry jam, while the oak stands to the side, insistent in vanilla and toast. Nothing has merged, everything is separated. Yet this is a great wine, easily the greatest Cabernet to emerge from Livermore Valley in memory. Beautiful now, and should develop for a decade.
0 out of 0 people thought this note was helpful.
* Expert NoteJanuary 12, 2012
What a great job Steven Kent is doing in Livermore Valley. This Cab carefully straddles the line between cool coastal and hot inland, and you can detect the winemaker’s intelligent choices every step of the way. Dry, soft and complex, it’s enormously satisfying in the balance of fruit, tannins and oak.
0 out of 0 people thought this note was helpful.
* Expert NoteJanuary 12, 2012
Quite fragrant, with smoky, rich hints of plum and spice. It’s silky smooth on the palate, refined and yet brimming with plush raspberry, black cherry, cola, spice, herb and cassis flavors. Very elegant and powerful.
0 out of 0 people thought this note was helpful.
* Expert NoteJanuary 12, 2012
Way too tannic to earn a higher score, although the dryness is welcome, and the blackberry and black cherry flavors are complex, augmented with floral, licorice notes. The tannins hit the mouth hard, and are unlikely to age out.
0 out of 0 people thought this note was helpful.
* Expert NoteJanuary 12, 2012
The aroma of charred oak dominates this Malbec, while oak tannins rule the palate. The underyling wine is soft and fruity and tannic in itself, with blackberry and currant flavors. Big and hefty, it’s a wine to drink with superrich fare, like barbecue or meat stews.
0 out of 0 people thought this note was helpful.
* Expert NoteJanuary 12, 2012
A good wine, not a great one, that shows why Petit Verdot on its own is hard to make into a complete wine, although from a marketing point of view, it has a certain tale to tell. Midnight dark in color, bone dry and big in tannins, it has flavors of blackberries, blueberries and oak.
0 out of 0 people thought this note was helpful.
* Expert NoteJanuary 12, 2012
A very good introduction to Steven Kent’s Livermore Cabernets, sourced from a handful of his single-vineyard designates, including the Ghielmetti, Home Ranch and Smith Ranch. This is 79% Cab with smatterings of Cab Franc, Malbec and Petit Verdot (an up and coming varietal in Livermore), and still needs some time to develop but all the essentials are there.
0 out of 0 people thought this note was helpful.
* Expert NoteJanuary 12, 2012
A big, fat, ripe, unctuous wine. Shows massive black cherry, chocolate and cedar flavors, with prickly spices through the finish, and firm tannins. Bold and impressive now with rich fare.
0 out of 0 people thought this note was helpful.
* Expert NoteJanuary 12, 2012
This first vintage of Steven Kent’s Ghielmetti Vineyard Cab is worth seeking out to see what Livermore is capable of. Ghielmetti is planted to five different clones of Cab but for this wine the winery is using only one block. The result a big, serious Cab that’s concentrated with black cherry, cocoa and tobacco that will majestically develop over the next 10–12 years.
0 out of 0 people thought this note was helpful.
