452442 Fri Oct 19 17:31:08 -0700 2007 20 34 Wine 0 3051291 Simple question/topic. What cabs are considered to be the best of the world, meaning regions/countries? List 5 please. I only drink cabs and want to invest more into my cellar. Thanks in advance! How do Napa cabs really rank with other worldly cabs (France, Italy, Chile..etc etc)? Fri Oct 19 17:31:08 -0700 2007 133908 ecrquick 1 3051455 First, some questions: 1.) Do you mean only 100% Cab wines, or are blends allowed? 2.) Which Cabs do YOU find worth drinking? As one who only drinks Cabs, I think that this would be most important. 3.) Are you planning on stocking the cellar for your future enjoyment, or are you looking for an investment? 4.) What is your projected cost/btl.? I don’t want to suggest Screaming Eagle, when you’re looking for Joseph Phelps Napa Cab. As far as your question on Napa Cabs, I think that they are some of the best in the world, but that is my personal opinion. At a similar level (some better, some slightly behind), I’d go to Bordeaux, but most are blends (as are most CA-Cabs to some extent). As has been evidenced in other threads, I’m not a fan of Chilean Cabs, but ChicagoMike is trying to help be get over that. Hunt Fri Oct 19 19:23:45 -0700 2007 3051291 11329 Bill Hunt 2 3051896 Thanks for the comment. I am sort of new at this, but love a great bottle of cab with a great dinner. I don't buy to drink now. I usually buy only CA cabs. I plan to buy and save for 5+ years before I drink a good bottle. I like to have a good bottle of wine for a relatively good price bought now to be enjoyed later (so i don't have to pay the $$ for it later if you know what I mean). Right now I have a bunch of the following: Caymus, Cakebread, Silver Oak, Merryvale, Axios, Egelhoff, Duckhorn, Dunham, and a few Mondavi's and Beringers (not the basics of those two) and I do have a few Chateau Pontet Canets. I haven't done all my research yet but I do assume most of these are 100% cabs? AND, I am on the mailing list for Screaming Eagle!! lol, haven't gotten my membership email yet and don't expect it for MANY years to come. Thanks! Sat Oct 20 06:27:29 -0700 2007 3051455 133908 ecrquick 3 3051919 I would suggest Oregon/Washington for some great Cabs. Owen Roe and Andrew Will are to of my favorites. I also like John Anthony from Napa. Like Hunt, I am not a fan of Chilean wines (maybe I need to use more cheese) Sorry Chi Mike, I couldn't resist....... Sat Oct 20 06:47:38 -0700 2007 3051896 50082 TonyO 3 3052023 Of the ones that I know in you list, they are all within the ATF labeling laws for Cab (75%), and probably have some Merlot, and maybe some Cab Franc blended in. Within the basic price-point of the wines that you mention, I'd suggest Joseph Phelps' Napa Cab. It's a few $ down from the Caymus (Napa, not the SS) and is a very nice wine. Up the $ scale, and a Bdx.-style blend, his Insignia offeres a lot of bang for the $. In the Beringer house, the St. Clement is a good wine, that will reward you in 5 years. Though both have had their ups and downs, the Beringer & Mondavi Reserve bottlings have proved really good over the decades. Another blend, that I fancy is the Cain Five and the Ridge Monte Bello (often nearly 100% Cab Sauv., but also blended to some degree in many years) should not be overlooked. I assume that you have a good storage solution for these wines, as they will offer you their best if kept at a constant cool temp with little, or no UV light. I'm certain that others will have some personal favorites, that you can add to your list. Hunt Sat Oct 20 07:59:14 -0700 2007 3051896 11329 Bill Hunt 2 3212992 Cakebread, Caymus, Duckhorn,Silver Oak. Nice start. You have some of my favorites. Funny you should mention "Screaming Eagle". I just had a conversation on Friday about this wine. One of the anesthesiologist I work with was recently asked if he would like to "look" at a bottle. I'm not sure whether they actually let him "touch" the bottle. Definitely, I wine best saved for a special occasion and not just because, you had a bad day at work. Then again? Susan Sun Dec 16 12:38:20 -0800 2007 3051455 150430 Susan Hendrick 1 3051964 Here is my list, with money being no object: 1. Ornellaia 2. Opus One 3. Ch Margaux 4. Viader 5. Shafer And that is with only a moments thought. If I put more thought into is, the list would grow. I can't wait to see others' respnses. Sat Oct 20 07:16:11 -0700 2007 3051291 62812 chickstein 2 3052005 Grgich and the very, very hard to acquire Osoyoos Larose from Bristh Columbia. Sat Oct 20 07:44:25 -0700 2007 3051964 11158 Leper 3 3189742 Well, get this ... in the SF Bay Area Osoyoos Larose 2003 is selling for $9.99 at Grocery Outlet. Fri Dec 07 20:29:54 -0800 2007 3052005 10264 rworange 2 3052929 pichon lalande comtesse calon segur blankiet shafer hss Sat Oct 20 17:19:19 -0700 2007 3051964 31795 ibstatguy 1 3053611 CHRIS . . . first things first: California makes the best California wines in the world. Frnce makes the best French wines in the world. And, by the way, Washington State produces the best Washington wines in the world, too. The key thing to remember is that they are DIFFERENT! * The TYPE of grape may be names the same, the grapes themselves are distinctively different depending upon their origins. * The CLIMATE (mother macro- and micro-) is differemt. * The SOIL type is different. * The WINEMAKER is different. * Quite often, the origin of the WOOD, or even the kind of wood, used to age the wine is different. * The COOPER(S) is/are different. * and so on and so on and so on . . . That aside, nothing can compare to a magnificent bottle of Ridge Monte Bello from the Santa Cruz Mountains . . . unless you prefer the character and flavor of a Joseph Phleps "Insignia" from the Napa Valley. Then again, nothing can compare to a Château Latour . . . unless your taste buds prefer the style and suppleness of a Château Palmer. And the power and complexity of a Quilceda Creek Washington Cabernet Sauvignon has no equal . . . unless you happen to prefer Leonetti. The same applies to the great Cabernets from Australia, from South Africa, Italy, Chile, and from a number of other places on this tiny little planet . . . And we haven't even addressed the myriad of complications when you start comparing a Cabernet Sauvignon from Washington State to a Cabernet from Bordeaux or a wine from Australia with a wine from Italy . . . Chris, the only person who is going to be able to decide which is best, etc., etc. is you. We can all name our favorite Cabernets, we can try to describe the differences, but you really need to taste them for yourself. Having said that, I am surprised that there aren't more names like "Dunham" on your list above. To my taste, Washington is the source of some truly amazing Cabernets, and I find that I often prefer them to many of the California names you mentioned. Cheers, Jason Sun Oct 21 06:19:17 -0700 2007 3051291 28122 zin1953 2 3054004 Jason, Thanks for your point of view - well said and taken. I agree with you. I suppose I am sort of biased to Napa cause I got married at a winery there and did all the winery stuff for a few years. I recently moved to WA and I am learning (from this board too, and ty!) that WA/OR wines are actually quite great. I plan on going out and trying an Owen Roe here very soon. I have a few Cougar Crest reserves - haven't tried it yet, but hear it's great. Once again, ty for the info.. Sun Oct 21 10:30:09 -0700 2007 3053611 133908 ecrquick 1 3054083 The "best" cabernet is always a matter of palate preference, but certainly would include the following (no particular order), keep in mind many bottlings from these regions may be "cabernet dominant" blends: 1) Bordeaux, France 2) Northern Napa, California.... most specifically including vineyards from the areas of A) Oakville, B) Rutherford, C) Spring Mountain, D) Howell Mountain, and E) Diamond Mountain... and to a certain extent Stags Leap and Mount Veeder. 3) Northern Sonoma, California..... specifically the Alexander Valley 4) Central Chile, specifically the Alto regions of the Maipo Valley 5) South Australia, specifically vineyards from A) the Barossa Valley, B) Coonawarra on the Limestone Coast, and C) the McLaren Vale on the Fleurieu Peninsula... You could really add some vineyards from the Santa Cruz Mountains in California as well... Keep in mind also that cabernet is extremely vintage-specific... I'd much prefer a mainstream wine from a good year in the Margaret River Valley of S.W. Australia or the Colchagua Valley of Chile than a trophy wine from an off-year in Bordeaux or Oakville... Sun Oct 21 11:12:20 -0700 2007 3051291 42549 Chicago Mike 1 3055470 Money no object 5: Haut-Brion Harlan Estate Araujo Shafer Hillside Select Sloan IF you allow for Cabernet Franc then bump Sloan and add Quintarelli Alzero. (Although this is a completely different tasting wine). After reading through you post is sounds like you are looking for $100ish Napa cabs. My top 5 there would be: Karl Lawrence Reserves (various vineyards) Gemstone Etude (pass on '03 and '04) Chappellet PHEV Tua Rita Giusto di Notri (Tuscan but with some Napa style) The wildcard is Chateau Montrose which, to me, is one of the very best estates in Bordeaux. It is impossible to say how much it costs since vintages as so vastly different. But, for example, you can still find the '95 for well under $100 and that is awesome stuff. While, ultimately, I do not think it will be the best Bordeaux of 2003, when first releast I thought it was. And I did have it right next to an '03 Lafite. Of course, the '03 Montrose was released at $170... Mon Oct 22 02:38:47 -0700 2007 3051291 50041 whiner 2 3213480 Be careful with the Haut-Brion; many of them have a higher percentage of merlot than cabernet. Sun Dec 16 16:19:34 -0800 2007 3055470 92744 invinotheresverde 3 3217836 I can't recall a time when there was ever more Merlot in Chateau Haut-Brion than Cabernet Sauvingon. Could you name some vintages where this occurred? The estate's vineyards are planted to 55 percent Cabernet Sauvignon, 25 percent Cabernet Franc, and 20 percent Merlot -- well, that's the percentage of of the red grape vines in the vineyard. They also have some Sauvignon Blanc and Sémilion planted for the production of Château Haut-Brion Blanc. But in order to have a wine that has more Merlot than Cabernet Sauvignon, the estate would have to declassify and bulk out an awful lot of Cabernet Sauvignon! Tue Dec 18 06:28:30 -0800 2007 3213480 28122 zin1953 4 3218563 Agreed. I know how the vineyards are planted. Per Parker, the 2000 vintage is "51% Merlot, 42% Cabernet Sauvignon, and 7% Cabernet Franc". Tue Dec 18 09:55:05 -0800 2007 3217836 92744 invinotheresverde 5 3218584 Perhaps I shouldn't have said "many". Tue Dec 18 09:59:50 -0800 2007 3218563 92744 invinotheresverde 1 3058383 Everyone, Wonderful information..... Thanks so much, Great board - glad I found it. Mon Oct 22 23:39:57 -0700 2007 3051291 133908 ecrquick 1 3064722 Though I am not the biggest cab fan, I have come across a couple I appreciate! Maryhill's 2004 reserve is excellent and for an under $15 I'd suggest Genesis Wed Oct 24 17:44:01 -0700 2007 3051291 135133 washingtonred 1 3064755 my favorites are: calif: not in any orders harlan shafer hillside select pride reg and rsrv karl lawrence switchback ridge i can go on forever here..... france: bordx..again not in any order margaux haut brion lynch bages leoville las cases pichon barron other area besides calif or bordx: quilceda creek conho y toro don melchor clarendon hills there are tons of other cab lovers red out there that are blends...it opens up your selection by tons. Wed Oct 24 18:01:31 -0700 2007 3051291 79299 rickym13