2021 Mt. Brave ‘Mount Veeder’ Cabernet Sauvignon

JS99 A fabulous wine of focus and polish with very fine tannins that caress your palate and give great length to the finish. Medium to full body. The aromas of violets and currants are so beautiful. Dreamy. Best ever? A blend of 92% cabernet sauvignon, 4% cabernet franc, 2% merlot, 1% malbec and 1% petit verdot. A total of 3830 cases produced. Give it three to four years to soften.
JD97 The 2021 Cabernet Sauvignon Mount Veeder is 92% Cabernet Sauvignon and the rest Cabernet Franc. It’s a classic Mountain Cabernet with full-bodied richness and ample, although velvety, tannins as well as pure cassis and currant-like fruits, gorgeous mid-palate depth and opulence on the palate, and beautiful complexity in its tobacco, graphite, and bouquet garni-like nuances. It’s another remarkable wine from Carpenter that has some upfront accessibility today yet deserves 3-4 years in the cellar. It will have two decades of overall longevity, and as top Napa Cabernet Sauvignon goes, it’s a terrific value.
DEC97 Winemaker Chris Carpenter says that his Mt. Brave Cabernet Sauvignon from Mt. Veeder is intended to serve as a counterpoint to the La Jota Cabernet, which is from Howell Mountain, but that each wine showcases a softer expression of mountain Cabernet, and one that is poised for earlier drinking for collectors who stash bottles of the single vineyard Cabernet wines from Lokoya in their cellar. The soils atop Mt. Veeder are volcanic and sedimentary, and two sites provide the grapes for Mt. Brave. One is the Mt. Brave Vineyard, formerly Chateau Potelle Vineyard, and the site is above the fog line on the northern part of Mt. Veeder, where the soils are well-draining, and yields are generally two tons per acre in good vintages. The other is Veeder Peak Estate. Each site is about 24ha. This blend of 92% Cabernet Sauvignon, 4% Cabernet France, 2% Merlot, 1% Malbec, and 1% Petit Verdot was aged 23 months in 80% new French oak. Super fragrant with black fruits, black cherry, and graphite minerality with violets and cherry liqueur undertones. Full-bodied with pronounced tannins that have a chalkiness about them, balanced by very soft and supple fruit that makes this wine so approachable in its youth. An extended finish is marked by blue fruit and pronounced garrigue, blue agave syrup, sage, and crushed cocao nibs.
TWI96 The 2021 Cabernet Sauvignon, with 4% Cabernet Franc, 2% Merlot, 1% Malbec, and 1% Petit Verdot in the blend, is deep garnet-purple in color. It needs a lot of swirling to unlock notes of blackcurrant preserves, blackberry pie, and boysenberries leading to hints of cedar chest, beef dripping, crushed rocks, and garrigue. The full-bodied palate is solidly constructed with super-firm grainy tannins and just enough freshness to support the dense, muscular fruit, finishing long and savory.