Amapola Creek 2015 Cabernet Sauvignon

The first thing to note with this wine is the color, the core is a red so dark it’s practically black, and it fades sharply to a rich garnet at the edge. Smell the glass, and your first impression will be blackberries with just a hint of anise liqueur. Stay with the glass for a moment, and the nose gains in black and red fruit, bright and fresh but with a sweet note of preserved Italian cherries.

Take a sip, and you will initially find a pleasant acidity coupled with a velvety mouthfeel, balanced against an elegant note of red currants. Linger a moment, and you will uncover bold characters of pomegranates and rock candy, with just a hint of the liqueur hinted at in the nose, all woven over a background of rich, juicy tannin. Swallow your sip, and you will find that the finish on this wine is huge and intense, a rolling wave of ripe tannins and decadent berry compote that is nearly overwhelming. At its peak, the finish unveils the heart of this wine; coffee and chocolate, blackberries and currants, anise and cedar, everything promised at the beginning of the palate is delivered with interest. You can hold, drink or cellar this wine for a decade.

Blend: 93% Cabernet Sauvignon & 7% Petit Verdot

Alcohol: 15.2%

94 POINTS - "Blended of 93% Cabernet Sauvignon and 7% Petit Verdot, the deep garnet-purple colored 2015 Cabernet Sauvignon Estate Vineyard offers pronounced black currants, black cherries and wild blueberry scents with hints of mulberries, Chinese five spice, tilled soil, bay leaves and tapenade. Very big, concentrated and powerful in the mouth, it completely coats the palate with black fruits and savory layers, supported by firm, grainy tannins and seamless freshness, finishing with great persistence." Robert Parker's Wine Advocate

93 POINTS - "The 2015 Cabernet Sauvignon Sonoma Valley is a beautiful blend of 93% Cabernet Sauvignon and 7% Petit Verdot that spent two years in new and used French oak barrels. Cassis, currants, dried tobacco, and lead pencil notes all emerge from the glass and it's layered, medium-bodied, and seamless on the palate. Possessing fine tannin and terrific overall balance, it's going to keep for 10-15 years." Jeb Dunnuck

Socially Rated 4+ / 5 ⭐

Spread along 600 vertical feet of a sun-washed western slope of the Mayacamas range, our 100+ acre Amapola Creek ranch borders the highly acclaimed Monte Rosso Vineyards. The red, basaltic volcanic soils we share with our esteemed next-door neighbor have yielded superb wine for well over the last century. The rhyolitic soils from our China Wall Vineyard add a firm tannin structure to the French clone Cabernet Sauvignon vines planted there in 2000. All 20 acres of our mountain estate vineyards are CCOF (California Certified Organic Farmers) certified organic. Estate vineyard blocks, China Wall, Bobcat Run, Fox Trot Meadow, and Montaña Vista were the sources for our 2015 Cabernet Sauvignon. Using grapes from these distinct micro-climates and soil profiles allows us to showcase the diverse terroir of our vineyards.