Rob's "Wine of the Week" Archives
NAPA VALLEY CABERNET SAUVIGNON 2004 VINTAGE OVERALL
Description: If you have been reading this column at all this year, you have seen that for months I have been telling you that the 2004 vintage was shaping up to be a great year. Every bottle I drank reminded me of the excellent 1997 and 1999 lots.
Sure enough, this week the new issue of Wine Spectator Magazine declared the 2004 vintage “great,” and on par with the aforementioned years.
WINES TO LOOK FOR: For this week’s report, I wanted to give you a few very findable, very accessible and very good 2004 Napa cabs that are affordable and will give you a taste of the overall vintage and how good it is:
ROBERT MONDAVI OAKVILLE |
Available at almost every store on the planet for about $40, this wine is surprisingly excellent. Now that the Mondavi family no longer has a stake in the wine, perhaps the label will return to its classic quality. 4 out of 5 vines. |
PROVENANCE
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Long one of my favorite wines, this is findable at Sam’s and Costco, some grocery stores and most wine retailers for about $30. As usual, this year’s Provenance is smooth, silky and full and ready to be enjoyed. 4 out of 5 vines. |
FERRARI-CARANO ALEXANDER VALLEY
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Another of my favorites that is available in almost all grocery stores and certainly in Costco in Nevada for about $30. It’s a little more fruit driven than I usually love, but it is well balanced and ready to be enjoyed. 4 out of 5 vines. |
Wine NOT to Look For: Even great vintages have wineries that screw up. These well known, easily finable wines suck in 2004:
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