Surprised me that you even reviewed the Luna as I have never had a taste of any of their wines that I even vaguely liked. Same goes for Chalk Hill in my book. Typical of California Cabs, overpriced and overblown. Turnbull has been consistent and I am disppointed that Juslyn went to this overoaked style as they really haven’t been in the past, but I guess that is where the market is going. I have been collectiing and drinking Cabs since 1978 and still have about 120 bottles of just cabs but now I tend towards blends in the Bordeaux style or Bordeaux wines themselves only. I had fallen prey to some of the overblown wines of the past but will no longer buy them. For the unknowing, price and avaialbility(see Harlan Estates, Screaming Eagle, etc) seems to be the standard for Cal Cabs not actual taste or value.

oak monster hit with a tranquilizer dart … freaking hilarious. i lost it.

QOTD:
10 years ago, Cabernet was all I drank, and did so for a few years.
Now, I am burnt on the subject, especially Cal Cabs.
Have said that, I do drink Bordeaux cab based wines which, as you know, are completly different creatures. Besides I don’t much foods that require these wines. Steaks are probably once or twice a month.

Cheers

QOTD Next time you have a cab tasting, I have to be eating a cheeseburger to enjoy it. Love cabs but fell to syrah a few years back so now I’m back on the cab wagon and have enjoyed some thoroughly palate staining cab gob wines. Must be the syrah influence.

LOVE Cabs…started drinking them real cheap, like 1.5L cheap, have been entertained by lots of ppl and had some great cabs and now I cannot stomach the cheaps…not really well versed on the nose or exact taste yet, but my palate knows what I like when I taste it. Make sense???

QOTD: Don’t drink too much cab these days. Generally exploring other reds. Typically only drink a cab when out for a nice steak dinner. Although I did try the 2004 Twenty Rows cab (18 bones) a few weeks ago and it was a nice cocktail wine. Great show!

I am back including Californiz Cabs, but I want them to be more complex and a little more sophisticated tham I used accept. Power without complexity is like gratuitous violence.

QOTD: At first I wasn’t a fan of Cabernet. Now I love it! France made me really appreciate Cabernet. I have JUST started tasting California Cabs and I am really eager to try the Turnbull but you are sold out of it and my local wine store sells its for $45!! HELP!!!

I am 100% with you on the oak “monster” issue.

I started out on Cabernet when I first got into wine 42 years ago. I loved it then and couldn’t understand what anyone saw in Bordeaux and especially red Burgundy. About 12 years later, I got exposed to good Bordeaux, and for about 15 years liked them both equally while appreciating their differences. Then California started over-oaking their cabs, and my allegiance switched almost entirely to Bordeaux over Cab. Also, during this 15 year period of time, I came to appreciated red Burgundy and Rhones and Southern France red wines. Except for a handfull of Cabs, I haven’t bought any in about a decade. I still have about 700 of them (the less oaky ones)in my cellar that now range from 27 to 7 years old, and still love to drink them. However, over the last 15 years, my interests have expanded further into American Pinot, Piedmonte, Tuscany, and Spanish reds, so I am much more deversified in my preferences.

QOTD: I drink cabs or cab blends about 1/2 the time.

Great Hogan reference. What ever happened to Bob Backlund?

@Bill: He’s with TNA right now.

QOTD: I am in the middle. I go back to Cab Sauv often but mix in Syrah/Shiraz, Pinto Noir, Petit Syrah and others …

Thanks for the show. I am always leary of CA wines as I have found them to be WAY over priced for what you get. I have tried several 30-40 Cabs from Cali only to be disappointed. I will definitely try the Turnbull!

Dang Gary,

I have been drinking the Turnbull for a few years and agree it is an incredible QPR. But with you telling everyone about it, now it’s gonna get harder to find. 😉 I hear the Turnbull Black Label is also an overperformer at its higher price range.

BTW – Your price is the best I have seen anywhere for the 2004.

I have always loved Cabernet Sauvignon and always will. I will take a great California Cab over a Bordeaux any day of the week. RP and Rolland, et al are ruining the Bordeaux market and Cali finally seems to be coming back to its roots. Patrick Glenn in Sonoma and Sbragia in Napa/Sonoma are two of my favorite winemakers who do things right year after year. Turnbull, Snowden, Etude, and on and on produce consistently great Cab. And as long as the oak monster has singed branches, bring it on! Take that you bastards!

Coming out of lurking mode… Great episode! Exactly what I needed, as I’m going down to New York for the weekend and wanted to pick up a bottle of Cali wine while there (they are either unavailable or ridiculously overpriced here in Quebec), I will definitely seek out the ’04 Turnbull.

QOTD: Given that it’s tough to get American wines at accessible prices here, I’m just starting to get into Cab. In reds I wind up drinking more Syrahs and Merlots.

Big G. Don’t fear the OakMonster Bro! I love it. Having said that I’ll shall scoop up a Turnbull. QOTD I’m in the middle. I think I need to do some Blind tasting before I move on.

QOTD: I’ve just begun to drink wine and I’ve started out with a cab. It was a some sort of local wine from New Mexico called Desert Rose, and I have a ’94 Avalon, that I’m going to crack open most likely for the French Open tennis final.

You are the best. I got the wristband a few days ago and have been wearing it ever since. People ask what I’m wearing and I tell them about you. I guess that’s why you send them out.

QOTD: I guess I’m at the beginning of my “cabernet ladder.” I bought a lot of syrah, pinot noir and cabernet but so far have only tasted the cabernet. It’s a special situation since I’m an orthodox jew and only drink kosher wine. I bought a lot of covenant napa cabernet and am slowly learning to taste.

Could you give a show on “how to taste?”

Sensei,

Agree with many that we would have loved to know who was YOUR guest. Next time make them OUR guest….

QOTD – always have one hand firmly on a rung of the ladder. Like many it is hard to purchase the high dollar CA cabs, but I am lucky enough to do some entertaining for my job so i do get to enjoy on an expense report from time to time. But I have now taken the ladder all over the world. Chile, South Africa, Bordeaux, Australia and anywhere else the king of grapes is grown. Love cabs and cab blends.

Enjoy seeing the progression of these episodes….hair more messed up, shirt more wrinkled…words slurring more…by tomorrow you should be a mess!!!…:)

Thank you for taking the time to tape all of these episodes. This vayniac really appreciates it!!!

Grasshopper

like Cab. but it’s never been #1 for me.
Seek out QPR’s in Chile and Washington.

Great epi. GV.

I started drinking wine with Cabernets, since I transtioned from single malts,however, since then I’ve moved to Syrah, Petite Sriahs, Zins, Rhones&Bordeauxs recently because of all the noise about 03 & 05.

QOTD: Somewhere in the middle. My wife and I Honeymooned in Napa last June so there was definitely a strong Cab surge for us but we’ve fallen back to mainly Aussie Shiraz and a bunch of high value South American reds. Opened a bottle of Alexander Valley Cyrus last week and it was great. We also have a good supply of Wynn’s “Black Label” Cab for a day-to-day red.

My local shop has the 2004 Turnbull for $39 but it is still pre-arrival… hopefully they will drop it a tad when it arrives and I can jump on some at a better price point. Great show.

QOTD: I started with some cabs many years ago because it was one of the preimir grapes. I still like it, but don’t have it regularily because the better ones are out of my price point. Over the years, I’ve been trying a lot of other varieties. As for other reds, I like the merlots from WA, the Rhone Syrahs, Chianti Classico and Bordeaux Pomerals.

I have never had any of thoose wines but i had a bottle of Luna in my hand the other day over at bottle barn…Almost picked it up and then passed. Glad I did after your seeing your review…I think I will try that Turnbull you were chalking up “no pun intended”…As for me I am in the middle of my cab experience…Found a few I really like and bought a few cases…I am kinda getting into reslings and zins…But I think Cabs will always be my fav…