2010 Greystone Cellars Cabernet Sauvignon

This California Cabernet has a huge amount strawberries on the nose with a hint of vanilla and cedar chips. The strawberries translate to a juicy flavor, almost like jam. We also got generous amounts of dark chocolate and a nice layer of toasted oak. It's a little fruit forward with a little added spice. We felt it was a little flat and one-dimensional, however it is well balanced, has a decent amount of tannin and a long smooth finish. This cab doesn't achieve a high score, but it does earn our seal of recommendation based on its sub-$10 price-point. It is highly serviceable in a group and most definitely stands up to everyday drinking.



Body: Full
Approx. Cost: $9.97 can be found here at WineChateau
Food Pairing: Bone-in veal chop or Pasta Bolognese

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2009 Earthquake Cabernet Sauvignon

Powerful name forecasts powerful flavors--and that it did. This Lodi Cabernet by Michael-David Vineyards had nice aromas. We found them to resemble chocolate covered raspberries (if they make them!). It's rich aromas led into rich flavors, as well. This wine is earthy, rustic, and full of character. Dark ripe fruit and chocolate dominate the palate. It drinks more like a zinfandel than a cab, but no one is complaining. We found it to be a crowd favorite. Mouthfeel was smooth and full, flavors were complex, and finish was long. We felt the $28 price tag was justified, as it drank more like a $40-$45 bottle. If it is out of your price range, we definitely recommend a try for a special occasion!


Body: Full
Approx. Cost: $28
Food Pairing: Grilled lamb chops

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2008 CalNaturale Cabernet Sauvignon

Great aromas filled the glass--ripe black cherries with some chocolate overtones. There was a nice pleasant floral note, too. The nose on this wine is intriguing!

We tasted that same chocolatey ripe fruit that we smelled, and even a dusty basement and green pepper layer that lent to the wine's complexity. We felt there could be more depth of flavor, though it does well for a <$15 wine. Aside from this, it is a juicy delicious California cab that would crowd-please for sure!

We were surprised by this wine, being in a box and all. Winemakers have been exploring green alternatives to conventional methods for years. New leaps and bounds have been made with eco-friendly packaging, sustainable production, and organic growing techniques over the past couple of years, making for some notably quality wines. This Cabernet is a prime example of this. CalNaturale has succeeded in producing a quality wine along with the challenges of organic production and alternative packaging. Kudos to them! They've got our vote!

Body: Medium to Full
Approx. Cost: 500ml-$7 | 1L-$11 (750mL equiv - $8.25)
Food Pairing: Grilled steak, Cheese platter with cured meats

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2009 Stephen Vincent Cabernet Sauvignon

Aromas are bursting out of the glass--blackberry jam and flowers--a very pleasant nose! We tasted ripe blackberries, strawberries, and some figs. Definitely a fruit-forward Cabernet. It has a nice rustic, earthy, lightly toasted oak to it that balances well. It even displays a little bit of mocha, too!

It's medium to full bodied, has great mouthfeel, and long lasting flavor at the end. Its whopping 14.6% alcohol doesn't show through. It has great balance, decent complexity, and delicious flavor characteristics. Excellent wine, and for $11? We'll take a case! Top Pick!

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2007 Aurielle Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon

Beautiful deep dark violet color looks like swirling velvet in the glass! Very nice aromatics on this Napa Valley cab: blueberries, spices, currants, a little earthiness, all wrapped tightly with oak. We couldn't stop smelling it!

The flavors were bursting through with blueberries, currants, dark chocolate, tobacco, and even a little bacon fat (yes, bacon fat!). You seem to find a new flavor profile with each sip--exceptional complexity. This cab is robust, full bodied, and has wonderful balance. We thought this would be an awesome pairing for braised short ribs or filet mignon! Although, It could easily be enjoyed on it's own.

Now, here's where wine gets tricky. This retails for $90 per bottle. The high price tag comes from the winery's careful selection of its grapes. Aurielle Vineyards takes great pride in its limited production wines that are crafted with superior quality. We recommend you check out there approach on their website here. If we were to judge solely on tasting, it is an exceptional wine. When comparing price, though, you run the chance of a wine that scores the same at $40. We are confident in giving this what it deserves, which is a top rating. This cabernet displays truly wonderful layers of aromas and flavors, something you rarely get in sub-$30 wines. Cheers! Top Pick!

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2006 Cleavage Creek Cabernet Sauvignon Reserve

This Napa Valley Cabernet displays intriguing aromas and complex layers of flavor--something we all look for in a wine. In the glass, we smelled a combination of oak and earth, along with prunes and dried figs.

A wine with "complex layers of flavor" shows off different flavors with each sip. If a wine is exceptional, these flavors work in synergy! We found that in this cab. We started off tasting that rustic earthy basement (the good kind!) we got on the nose. This led to lovely amounts of oak (not too much) filled with pomegranate and black cherries. On the back end, a floral component (lilacs?) showed wonderfully!

The mouth feel was great. The tannins were firm and tight. This cabernet was robust, full bodied with a long finish. This wine will look even better in a year, but by all means, buy at least one bottle to drink now! A must-have from Cleavage Creek! If you haven't heard of them already, you should definitely check them out. They're a winery devoted to breast cancer research to which they donate 10% of their sales. You can read more about their story here.

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2006 Tenuta Argentiera Bolgheri Villa Donoratico

Rich Italian blend of 60% Cabernet Sauvignon, 30% Cabernet Franc, and 10% Merlot. Very deep in color, this blend sports some wonderful aromas of vanilla, mocha, toasted oak and green peppers!

Layers of leather, currants, plums, coffee and dried herbs filled our palate. The tannins have some serious grip in the mouth, but the wine offers great balance of acidity. Subtle oak flavors and green peppers finish it off on the back end. Decently long lasting finish leaves you wanting more!

This robust, medium-to-full bodied wine is sure to please most, especially bold cab drinkers! the complexity of different flavors justifies the $20 price tag. This is a perfect "gift wine!" Very good! Top Pick!

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2008 Mirassou Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon

This Cabernet started off really nice! We smelled mocha, vanilla, floral notes, and spices coming out of the glass.

We tasted fresh herbs, ripe berries, strawberry jam, not too be confused with sweetness! This cabernet displayed delicate tannis and smoothness. On the other hand, it's a little flat and flabby, and lacking some body.
The heat from the alcohol was prominent, which is something we can't look passed!

Mirassou cabernet is not a bad wine! It offers some great aromas and flavors. Its downfalls are minor, especially at this price point ($10). This is a serviceable wine, making it a fine choice for parties, too--we just wouldn't stock it on our cellar.

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2007 Barricas Cabernet Sauvignon

This medium-bodied Mendoza Cab starts off with a heavy earth and mushroom flavors. Dried herbs and unripe grapes dominate the finish along with some acidity and tight tannins.

The flavors are all over the place in this wine--not something you want! It's really unbalanced, leaving your palate confused and dissatisfied. It's an OK effort, but there's a level of harshness that doesn't make this wine very serviceable. At about $12, this wine is a major PASS!

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2008 14 Hands Cabernet Sauvignon

This cabernet sauvignon was really smooth, almost too smooth. In fact, it was almost flat. It was very fruit forward, much like strawberry and blackberry preserves. This one-dimensional cab is overly jammy and uninteresting. Though not an awful wine for $11, it IS serviceable, but there are better options out there.

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2009 Cigar Box Cabernet Sauvignon

Full bodied, with dark deep ruby color, this cabernet packs some inspiration.

Vanilla, tobacco, dark ripe fruits, prunes, toasted oak, and spices all describe this cab. I'm missing something, possibly complexity. All of these flavors seem very one-lined and flat. I can't help but notice its fine tannins and long finish, though. Give it a try. For $10, you won't be missing out on anything else. There are a lot of inspiring flavors here that are sure to make someone happy :) !

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2007 Castle Rock Cabernet Sauvignon (Napa)

We all enjoyed this Napa cab quite a bit! Castle Rock gives us a SOLID wine, sure to please most (as it did). It displayed some nice fruits and really nice tannin structure! Slight oak completed the balance on the finish. This is GOOD SOLID red, especially to cab sauvignon drinkers. At only about $12, it's a steal and excellent QPR!

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N.V. Rex Goliath Cabernet Sauvignon

Got this on sale for 3 for $20, so I had to give it a try. Not bad! Pretty good QPR for what it offers. It's a little fruit forward, kind of artificial, almost like a fruit rollup. On the other hand it was pretty well balanced with slight oak and pretty good tannins for such an inexpensive wine. Give it a try if you pass by it in the store; you can't miss that giant rooster on the label!

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2006 Inniskillin Cabernet Sauvignon Reserve

This wine was given to us by a friend who was visiting back home near British Columbia's Okanagan Valley. Upon opening, there was a lot of heat. Gave it an hour or two and it mellowed out a ton! Typical cab with excellent tannic structure and wonderful balance and complexity. This wine showed really nice flavors of currants and cocoa! Delicious!!

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2007 ONA Anakena Cabernet, Carmenere, Syrah

Awesome wine! Anakena pulled through with this blend. Nice full body, dry with hints of berries, black currant, and great tannins. It has somewhat of a shorter finish, but the complexity really makes up for it! For $14.99, it's a steal. Be on the lookout for this wine at your local store.

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2007 Chateau St. Jean Cabernet Sauvignon

We didn't find anything too special about this wine. It showed characteristics of a typical cabernet sauvignon. It was smooth, lightly oaked, some tannic structure, and a little peppery spice. It wasn't bad, considering it's around $10, but it definitely didn't WOW us.

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2007 Line 39 Cabernet Sauvignon

This is something else! I haven't tasted a $12 Cab like this EVER! Not quite the $20 power cab, but this def lives up to most people's expectations. Definitely pick a bottle of this up. This is a straight forward cab with no nonsense. Solid choice any day at the store for a red.

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2008 CK Mondavi Cabernet Sauvignon

We're huge fans of this wine. You can buy a 1.5L (equal to two regular 750ml bottles) for about $11. That's pretty sweet if you ask me! This is great if you like to regularly drink wine (glass each night with dinner). Spending $15 on a 750ml for everyday dinner wine can get expensive.

We normally keep a bottle around, and our guests almost always enjoy it! It's a little fruitier than most Cabernets are, but it has nice full body with light oak and decent finish!! A VERY serviceable wine for anyone who likes a red. This is also an excellent choice for wine at a party! Try serving $15 750ml of J. Lohr at a party for 50. That can get expensive QUICK! Try it out and let us know what you think! I promise you won't be disappointed!

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