COLLECTIBLE CALIFORNIA CABERNET
Nature has not been especially kind to California over the past decade. Eight straight years of drought. Heart-wrenching wildfires. A devastating earthquake. And yet, as counterintuitive as it might seem, some of the most impressive and collectible California Cabernets have been made during this time – at least among the very top estates.
Indeed, the 2014s, 2015s and 2016s that are now on the market reveal both intensity and complexity of flavour while promising great ageworthiness. In my recent tastings, the 2016s in particular – when gentle rains in early spring replenished the ground waters – are beguilingly delicious and at the same time possess exquisite structures.
Beyond that gift of rain, to what does one attribute such success?
Of all the possible factors, the one that seems most likely to me is a simple fact: the top Cabernet winemakers (some of whom now have 30-plus vintages under their belts) understand the nuances of their terroirs on a granular level. They have left behind the very old days of recipe-made Cabernet, left behind a blinding reverence for
