772 | Wine | Napa Valley, Stags Leap District

"The 2009 Cabernet Sauvignon opens with enticing scents of raspberry jam, sweet herbs and spices. There is a centeredness and a poise to the 2009 that give the wine its sense of harmony and total balance. Sweet, floral notes reappear on the engaging finish. As good as this is today, it will only be better in another 2-3 years. This is another fabulous effort from Chimney Rock."

"The 2009 Cabernet Sauvignon SLV Estate shows off deep layers of expressive black fruit, licorice, white flowers and tar. Here, too, the influence of Antinori is felt in the wine’s polish, even if the real leap in quality does not take place until 2010 for this bottling. Layers of fruit build effortlessly to the big, dramatic finish. This is a hugely delicious wine with plenty of intensity and sheer personality."

"The 2008 Cabernet Sauvignon Hillside Select is quite structured. Even with its firm tannins, though, the wine shows gorgeous depth and sheer power. The 2008 isn’t a wine with early appeal, but it shows off tons of muscle and sheer depth. Dark fruit, leather, licorice, spices and tar inform the muscular, virile finish. The 2008 will require patience but its explosive personality virtually ensures it will be a rock star in a few years’ time."

"The flagship wine, the 2006 Cabernet Sauvignon Hillside Select performed even better this year than last year. A candidate for one of the top “wines of the vintage,” it reveals beautiful aromas and flavors of grilled meats and herbs intertwined with extravagant amounts of blackberry and cassis fruit, licorice, and charcoal. Extremely full-bodied, pure, deep, and layered, this is another prodigious Hillside Select that should evolve for 25-30 years." Reviewed by Robert Parker.

"Saturated medium ruby. Complex aromas of cassis, dark chocolate, licorice, minerals and spicy oak, plus a hint of game. Pliant and layered on the palate, with an insidious penetrating quality to the seamless cassis, game, mineral and licorice flavors. A floral element gives lift to this primary but varietally expressive wine. Finishes long and suave, with fine tannins. Delicious now but capable of aging for a decade or more. A terrific vintage for this bottling."