Cliff Lede
Napa Valley
Stags Leap District
2004 Cabernet Sauvignon
I truly enjoyed this wine. For a 2004 I felt this wine is still in great shape and could have even sat longer. Decanting this wine helped smooth it out and open it up a little bit as well, which I would definitely recommend doing. I'm not a big fan of Californian wines as I love to explore outside the US, especially Europe, Australia, New Zealand and South America, but this was a very pleasant experience for me. Plus, coming from the Stags Leap District you can't go wrong! Luckily my perks of working part time previously paid off as I had been storing this wine from back then and had got it for only for $4.99 and it retails for over $60.
The Stags Leap district became official in 1989. Cliff Lede is a newer winery that was established in 2002 in the famous Stags Leap District of Napa Valley. It's located in Yountville in the eastern side of Napa. There are stories of where the name Stags Leap came from, but legend has it that a stag used to jump or leap from rocky mountain top to mountain top. I always find it interesting where these names of wines and wineries come from.
The wineries from this district must use at least 85% of the varietal listed on the bottle. Cabernet is the premier grape in this district, but you will also find some of the other Bordeaux varietals here like Merlot and Petite Syrah that are blended into some of these wines.
Coming out of the glass was an overwhelming display of juicy raspberries that matched the taste on the palate as well. It was a beautiful balanced, structured, full bodied wine with zingy acidity that smoothed out once it had a chance to aerate. It had a very nice, length finish as well.
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