O'Shaughnessy Howell Mt. Cab

O'Shaughnessy Howell Mountain Cabernet Sauvignon 95 points Robert Parker's Wine Advocate The 2013 Cabernet Sauvignon Howell Mountain is O’Shaughnessy’s largest cuvée of wine, nearly 3,300 cases from her vineyard, with a final blend that is somewhat unusual - 76% Cabernet Sauvignon, 6% Malbec, 5% Merlot, 4% Petit Verdot, 3% Cabernet Franc, 3% Carménère, and a rather obscure one, 3% St. Macaire. Dense purple in color, with notes of mulberry, blackberry, graphite and spring flowers, the wine has great fruit, a dense, full-bodied mouthfeel, and wonderfully sweet, well-integrated tannin. The acidity is sound, the purity impressive, and the wine long and reassuring. Drink it over the next 20+ years. One of my favorite wineries in Napa Valley, Betty O’Shaughnessy, the proprietress, bought her original vineyard on Howell Mountain in 1996 and began planting in the red, rocky, aiken volcanic soils. The elevation is a whopping 1,900 feet and is south-sloping, which is perfect for the sun exposition. (RP) (12/2015)