Rested in over 60% new French oak, the delightfully round and rich 2017 Cabernet Sauvignon Red Mountain bursts from the glass with ripe and juicy fruit aromas along with notes of dusty chocolate and purple flowers that overflow the glass with baking spice elements. Medium to full-bodied, the wine is open and expressive with flavors of blackberry jus, juicy plum, hints of sage and thyme, with cocoa nib and vanilla tones across the mid-palate. Concluding with a balanced structure and lifting tannins that linger on the palate with a soft rockiness, the wine offers a delicious experience at a great price. Well done.

With 2% Syrah blended in, the 2016 Cabernet Sauvignon Red Mountain features classic black fruit aromas that are rich and lush, with nots of soft oak spices and purple flowers. Medium to full-bodied, the Cabernet is youthfully tight and rigid in the mouth, with grippy, structured tannins and a complex, mineral-driven tension, showing exceptional quality. The finish is dusty, with a composed yet tight complexity that will age beautifully over the next decade. 3,051 cases were made.

Chewy, nicely focused and appealing, with ripe black cherry and licorice flavors that dance deftly on the finish. Drink now through 2015. 225,000 cases made. –HS

此款葡萄酒質(zhì)地緊致，酸味稍帶尖硬感，帶有深色漿果和李子的風(fēng)味，余味中散發(fā)著雪松的氣味。此酒在 2013 至 2016 年間飲用最佳。產(chǎn)量：246,300 箱。

For thoughts on Chateau Ste Michelle’s uniqueness and recent evolution, consult my extensive April, 2013 text designed to introduce recent tasting notes. Ste Michelle’s 2009 Cabernet Sauvignon – of which there are a mind-boggling quarter-million cases, and which incorporates minor amounts of all five other well-known Bordelais varieties – emphasizes tobacco and herbs but overs a satisfyingly juicy, ripe core of dark berry fruit on a polished palate, finishing with lightly-invigorating piquancy of fruit pit and legume sprout as well as some genuinely saliva-inducing savor. Enjoy it over the next several years: there’s no danger of it falling-apart precipitantly. Unpretentious and low-key but satisfying, it certain qualifies as fine value in a field – under-$20 Cabernet Sauvignon – that’s dominated by confected and/or or under-ripe, and overall lackluster efforts. And incidentally, this received 16 months’ elevage and nearly one-third new oak evenly split between American and French origin, remarkable statistics for a wine of its price. (Touches of heat and bitterness diminished my appreciation of the riper but simpler 2010 Indian Wells Cabernet.) Tel. (425) 488-1133