Volume 33, Issue 10: August 2009
CABERNET SAUVIGNON SUBSCRIBERS ONLY With new producers emerging everyday and the uniqueness of individual plots of Cabernet becoming more important in its production, there are more choices than ever before. And with the 2006 vintage have delivered mixed results, more choice is means a wider selection of good wines in an ocean of acceptable offerings. SAUVIGNON BLANC SUBSCRIBERS ONLY We have known for years now that this grape can be induced to deliver very special wines--and there are a few of them in this issue, but the excitement in Sauvignon Blanc is today found in the new releases of the 2008 vintage. There are many, many fresh, fruity, bracingly bright, incredibly priceworthy wines in the reviews that follow. Best Buys SUBSCRIBERS ONLY Our search for bargains continues in Best Buys where we point you towards value propositions in Syrah, Petite Sirah and other Rhone reds--just in time for those mid-summer cookouts.				SUBSCRIBERS ONLY CONNOISSEURS' FORUMS with edtiors Charles Olken and Stephen Eliot. · wine price vs rating 2005 Louis Martini Winery Cabernet Sauvignon Monte Rosso Sonoma Valley Complex, rooty, briary, loamy and curranty from first sniff, this big and rich wine impresses for its outspoken but surprisingly composed blending of parts. It is full on the palate, high in ripeness, given to a spicy bent yet fully fruited and well-focused in varietal character. It is, in short, the best Cabernet to be produced from this famous hillside vineyard in years, and if it does not demand long aging, it is nevertheless likely to reward a half dozen or more years of patience. $85.00 Score: 91