2007 Pine Ridge Howell Mountain Cabernet Sauvignon

I enjoy drinking Cabernet Sauvignon wines from the Howell Mountain appellation.  During our Napa trip last year we drove to Howell Mountain and toured the whole area.  As you drive up the mountain there are some absolutely beautiful views.

Bill and Chris on Deer Park Road towards the top

Heading up Deer Park Road looking back at Silverado Trail

We spent most of the day on Howell Mountain and found a road back that took us to Lake Berryessa.  Lake Berryessa too is a must stop place when you are in Napa Valley.  I would suggest you plan your day and map it out ahead of time.  We were using our cell phones as GPS devices and we lost cell coverage.  We happened to take a couple maps with us so we lucked out.  Even though we had no cell coverage, on top of the mountain it is pretty easy to get your bearings and find your way back to Silverado Trail.

If you do take the journey to Howell Mountain there are also some well known wineries that you may want to schedule a visit!  A few that we are familiar with is Cade, Cakebread, and Duckhorn wineries.  We have been to the Duckhorn tasting room on Silverado trail but have not visited the other two.  During our upcoming trip in May, we have scheduled a cave tour and tasting at Cade.  We are looking forward to it.

If you are not familiar where Howell Mountain resides in Napa Valley, it is in the north eastern part of the valley.

Last Saturday we were feeling like having a glass of wine (image that).  Dave and Heather were coming over for dinner and just hanging out.  I wandered down to my cellar feeling like I wanted something that was a little bit more bold, fruit forward, and young.  Looking at my rack I immediately noticed a 2007 Howell Mountain Cabernet from Pine Ridge Winery.

I knew this was going to be the gem and a great start to a relaxing evening with some friends.  I grabbed the bottle and headed back upstairs.  As I was heading up I started thinking about decanting the bottle.  But as you know us, we like to drink now and forgo waiting.  Besides, I vary rarely need to decant a Pine Ridge wine because of it’s sediment.  Now if you have patience I would recommend decanting this precious one.  Decanting will only enhance the aroma and flavor of the 2007 Howell Mountain Cab.

Once upstairs I did not hesitate to cut the foil and remove the cork.  As usual I like to inspect the cork.  I know it does not really have much to say nor has a story, but for me if the cork looks poor there could be a problem.

As you can see the cork was in great shape.  I saw no leaking on the sides and I wasn’t able to break the cork with my thumb, forefinger and middle finger.

It was time to pour the Howell Mountain Cabernet into our beautiful new Bordeaux glasses Chris received as a gift for being Fan of the Month at Cosentino!

  Viewing the Howell Mountain Cabernet in the glass, you can see it had a brilliant deep Garnet color to it.  The meniscus showed the wine was very young.  I also noticed the clarity of the Howell Mountain Cabernet.

It was time to give the 2007 Cabernet a smell and sip…

The aroma of the Cabernet was not very intense.  I do have to say both Chris and I can always identify a Pine Ridge red wine.  It has a very distinctive nose (good).  The fruit smelled very young and fruity.  Some of the aromas we could identify were Dark cherry and Fruit.  I was wondering if maybe a little Black Current?  Tasting the wine it was a little dry.  No surprise for a Pine Ridge Cabernet.  For us again, that’s a good thing!  The Cabernet was full bodied and the tannins were there.  The tannins approached my mid palate and the finish was long, and very nice.  The main flavor I would identify with was Red Cherry.

We savored this wine for quite some time.  We are looking forward to another private tasting at Pine Ridge when we are in Napa this month.

We both rated the 2007 Howell Mountain Cabernet “three glasses”.  If I rated on a half glass scale I would have rated it 3 ½ glasses.

Cheers!

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