Mount Eden Vineyards Estate Bottled Cabernet Sauvignon 2017 / 750 ml.

A brilliant, youthful, unevolved wine that will give Ridge’s Monte Bello a run for its money, the 2017 Cabernet Sauvignon reveals a deep ruby/purple hue to go with a wonderful perfume of blackcurrants, blueberries, lead pencil, vanilla bean, exotic flowers, tobacco, and bouquet garni. Needing plenty of air to show at its best, it’s medium to full-bodied on the palate and has a concentrated, powerful style, ripe tannins, flawless balance, and a great finish. A blend of 82% Cabernet Sauvignon, 11% Merlot, 4% Cabernet Franc, and the rest Petit Verdot and Malbec, aged in used French and American oak, it’s going to benefit from 4–6 years of bottle age and, I suspect, have 30–40 years of overall longevity. (Jeb Dunnuck)

The 2017 Cabernet Sauvignon is going to need a number of years to come around. The only question is how many. In 2017, the Mount Eden Cabernet is shockingly opulent. Inky black fruit, bittersweet chocolate, spice, leather and incense are all dialed up in this super-sized Cabernet. Even so, there is plenty of structure lurking beneath. I can’t wait to see how this ages.

This has a zesty set of loganberry, raspberry and sweet bay leaf notes mixed together, along with flashes of violet, mesquite and anise. There’s a good tug of warm gravel running underneath and nice energy throughout. Should mellow nicely with cellaring. Best from 2024 through 2034. 1,285 cases made.

Balanced aromas of redwood and pine give depth to the asphalt and leather elements on the nose of this bottling. The American oak seems prominent on the dense, leathery palate, where dark and dried fruits play along with sandalwood and mahogany flavors.

This is a staunch mountain wine that needs a day of air to come out of its shell. It’s all hard edges at first, not so much about fruit, though the fruit is present; not inviting, but it leaves room for you to come inside. As the wine begins to relax, it feels like an old-fashioned cabernet with woodland flavors of mountain fruit and savory wild mushrooms. Powerful in its youthful structure, it needs a decade in the cellar for that structure to evolve.