2017 Cakebread ‘Benchland Select’ Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley

JD95+ One of the flagship releases, the 2017 Cabernet Sauvignon Benchland Select is all Cabernet Sauvignon that spent 22 months in 60% new French oak. Deep purple-hued with a classic Cabernet nose of blackcurrants, cassis, graphite, cedary spice, and chocolate, this puppy hits the palate with full-bodied richness, an elegant, seamless texture, a chalky minerality, and a great finish. It’s a smoking good Cabernet Sauvignon that will improve with 2-5 years of bottle age and cruise for two decades or more. This 2017 matches what this estate achieved in 2016 and 2015.
WA94 Bottled only three weeks ago, the 2017 Cabernet Sauvignon Benchland Select is 100% Cabernet Sauvignon, with 44% of the fruit coming from Vine Hill Ranch, 52% from Hill Ranch and 4% from Cakebread Oakville Ranch. It was aged 22 months in 60% new French oak. Very deep purple-black colored, it slowly emerges from the glass to reveal notions of baked black cherries, stewed black plums and warm cassis with touches of aged meat, dark chocolate, bay leaves and pencil shavings. Medium to full-bodied, the palate packs in the black fruits, supported by bags of freshness and a firm, grainy texture, finishing long and with tons of energy.