So yesterday we went to a Yacht Club function that ended early and invited another couple over to sample some Bordeauxs left over from the Dorks Bdx tasting the night before. Margot, a very very successful wine blogger whose experience is pretty much limited to (young) Washington state wines, seemed to be struggling with the 96 Sociando Mallet and 98 GPL I'd poured, so I skipped the Leoville Barton and went to the cellar for something else.
18 or 24 months ago I bought a case of a California cabernet from Wine Access. At this point I have no recall or justification about why I was so willing to trust and go in on a whole case of something I'd never drunk before, but it might have been merely a feeling that I needed to have more reasonably priced new world wines on hand for social occasions just like the one I was in last night where 'pretty decent' would be good enough. Interestingly, conversation got into various clubs we're in (or not), and the fact that we're both on Quilceda Creek's list but haven't bought any since 2010.
So with that preamble, I opened this with no idea what to expect:
2014 Sueño Profundo Cabernet Sauvignon Stags Leap District
This is a big wine, but as elegant and interesting as it is powerful. We pnp'd. Ripe (but not overripe) blackberry notes, earth and an occasional whiff of violets, root beer, dark chocolate and a little bramble, all backed up by sturdy tannins, spoke to a very good vineyard and talented winemaker (whoever that is) while pretty much halting all conversation as we four sat there in amazement. It's more traditional than modern without being rustic. Those tannins need more time, but wow, will be fun to watch this evolve. It's so good that for $29 per bottle all-in, delivered, I'm prepared to believe I'll never see another cabernet value as good as this again. Drinks like $75 and up, which caused us to revisit the Quilceda Creek topic. Why would anyone pay $150 for that when for the same money you could buy five of a wine like this? Of course, buying wines like QC is never about value, but still.