2002 Wolf Family Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon
I was first introduced to Wolf Family about 2 years ago, when a friend of mine opened up a bottle of the Meritage (1999?). At the time, Viader was popular, and the meritage offered a similar blend, Cabernet Sauvignon and Cabernet Franc, and for $40 this was a great deal over the Viader. The problem was, no one seemed to carry it. I briefly saw it at Jackson’s around that time, but they haven’t carried it since. Some wines fall off your radar, especially when they’re hard to find. Fast Forward to today, and Wolf Family has jumped into the spotlight, as Robert M. Parker jr. in his recent The Wine Advocate journal praised the wine as a “Sleeper of the Vintage” giving the Cabernet Sauvignon and Meritage high marks. If it wasn’t already hard to find before, it’s probably almost impossible to find now, the only way I lucked out on getting a half a case of the Cab and a couple Sauvignon Blancs was being on the mailing list before these ratings came out. The Meritage has been sold out for a while.
These wines are amazing garagiste efforts, definitely playing with the big boys here. Jane and Doug Wolf hired the winemaking talent of Karen Culler to help mold this relatively new wine into fantastic estate juice. If you can find any, it’s definitely worth the search. Make sure you put yourself on the mailing list for future releases.
The Wine: 2002 Wolf Family Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon
Price: $60 USD
Notes: A inky purple color, this wine showcases an amazing nose with strong anise, vanilla, blackberry, blueberry’s, and a touch of toasty oak, a fantastic full bodied wine on the palate with more berry flavors shining through, well integrated velvety tannins that aren’t overpowering and reflect beautifully on the long finish. Wonderful.
Score: 96pts JAT
Website: www.wolffamilyvineyards.com
