thanks. i look forward to it.

I consistently purchase Educated Guess Cab at around $19 -20 and it never disappoints; drink it before dinner, during dinner, and after….

QOTD- 1984 Keenan Cabernet Spring Mountain. Aged sooooo well.

QOTD – 2 of them. The first was, believe it or not, a 2001 Belvedere Sonoma Country cabernet sauvignon. That was the first cab I had, as a wine rookie, that showed me something way beyond the typical cheap Mondavi/Beringer California cabs we had been drinking. It blew my mind, with the spice, cola, rhubarb, blackberry, and plum that hit me over the head like a baby seal. That is the wine that turned me into a wine geek! The second bottle I must mention was a 1998 Stags Leap SLV I bought at the winery on my first trip to Napa/Sonoma with my now wife/then girlfriend. $115! When I bought it, I told myself that I would only open that bottle on the day we broke up, or the day we got married. We used it for our wedding toast… Side note – 1998 was a tough vintage in Napa, and the Stags Leap wine scored 96 points from Wine Enthusiast, who called it one of the few bright spots of the vintage. It was something great that came out of crap, and that was pretty metaphorical for us!

great show gary. so how's that shipping to canada coming along?

qotd. my parents' you-brew cab that tasted exactly like burnt marshmellows. it was the first time i realized that wine tasted like things other than “wine”.

Nice tight show. I've been big on southern France wines lately…some profound stuff at very reasonable prices. Even the “big” appelations down there, like Faugeres, can throw down some serious thunder for $20 bones or less. QOTD – Having my mind blown by a Santa Rita Medalla Real '06 Cab for $15. I literally tasted it and said “WTF!?” Went and bought a case the next day.

QOTD: Most memorable Cabernet experience (in the last 21 months) was tasting and selling the De Trafford Cabernet Sauvignon (with a touch of cab franc, Merlot, and PV!!) from Stellenbosch, South Africa to customers who love Cali Cab, AND those who love well-structured Bordeaux, and giving them both something that they love and is a completely new region at the same time. South Africa is truly the New World-Old World bridge.

$9 cab that is 90pts! That is THUNDER! Best cab story is from my honeymoon in napa valley. My new wife announced as we entered the tasting room that Charles Krug was my favorite winery because at the time I was in love with their 2003 reserve cab. The prices on their tasting list was pretty high compared to the rest of napa valley so we asked for the lowest price tasting. The guy behind the counter started to pour but just left me there holding the money. After he poured through the first list my wife said “obviously he isn't interested in your money, put it away…” I did and he started going through the next two lists. Then he started to open and pour bottles not on the list. One of them was a blend of the best cabs from the last several years that was fantastic. He said it was only available at the winery for $75. It was great but I still had a whole honeymoon to pay for so I went back and forth and then had decided to not get the wine and was ready to leave. My wife knew if I went back in there I would buy it and she had been encouraging me to get it so she handed me a magnet and said “I have to have this, go buy it for me” I went back to the counter and changed my mind and decided “What the heck, it's my honeymoon! I can get it and we'll figure out the finances later” So I asked for the bottle and handed him the magnet. He put the wine and the magnet in the bag and said $35 and some change. I questioned the price and he said maybe you can come back here on an anniversary and tell me if you liked it. It was a couple years after when I opened it for a special occaision and it was better than when I had tasted it there. My wife even enjoyed it and she doesn't really care for reds at all.

yeah. averys. im pretty sure the crozes thing is just a cock up on the site. For a start crozes cant be cab anyway. So yeah dont worry bout it. I ordered mine from them. I sould email them to let them know really.

cheers mate!

Hey that Anges label looks like the Montes Alpha/Puple Angel.

Gary I've been a lurker for a while, you have an amazing show and I wish you continued success!

Best Cabernet Sauvignon experience:

2005 IV Sons Cab, Baldacci Vineyards, Stag's Leap District. It had elegance, but didn't taste like the typical velvet tuxedo cab for that region. It had a backend creeping sweet oak (maybe a little oak monster!) but like an old world style Rioja, and the small blend of cab franc went a long way and gave it a strong green pepper and breathy earth quality. To me, I enjoy these flavors and really caught me off guard for a young napa red wine. Best part about this experience was the 50% off bottle rate for a case. So I've had 12 shots in the course of a year to define how solid a wine this was for me. I drank it all up in no time! Probably not smart, but for some reason I had a gut feeling that it wouldn't mature well because it surprisingly had some characteristics that tasted like it had 20 years under its belt.

If you ever do read this, can you share your thoughts if you have ever had this experience before? What would you do if a YOUNG wine by vintage tastes like it has well aged quality, would you store it or drink it up?

QOTD: hmmm Probably the first time I realized I liked red wine. I only had merlot a few times back in the early 90's and thought I hated red wine. Turns out I just didn't like that grape. Had a glass of Cab Sav and wondered where the hell that was all my life.

Villa des Anges – I think the cheese gave that some weight it doesn't normally have. Solid wine, for sure, and a good buy, but I wish it had a little more viscosity.

QOTD: A nice B.R. Cohn cab that, while it wasn't the best Cabernet Sauvignon I've ever had, was able to convince me that the varietal was worth trying again. I'd been turned off by a lot of poor mass-market California cabs.

NICE tight show today Gary. LOOOVIN it!!! Keep it up man.

best cab experiences are with some petite chateaux bordeaux 05s. very tasty

QOTD: Not quite a story but a fun fact. The only Wine Library wine I own is a Cabernet Sauvignon, Waypoint To Kalon.

PLCB just discounted a Vine Cliff Rock Block Cabernet Sauvignon. Haven't tried it but the feedback has been good.

Yes, I had a similar moment back in '87 while visiting the Silver Oak winery in Napa (when it was tiny). I didn't care for cabernet until I tasted their Alexander Valley cab. Wow.

QOTD: My first wines were Cabs. Brought me over from beer, now I'm hooked!

Best Cab experience: tasting 1994 Dalla Valle with Naoko Dalla Valle, tied with presenting Gary with an 07 Yarra Yering Dry Red No 1!

My best cab experience would have to be the 2006 Phifer Pavitt Date Night from Episode 579. This was my first mail order wine. The episode got my so excited I jumped on the mailing list and ordered 2 bottles of the 06. I opened the first one the day they came, and put the second bottle away for what I know is going to surpass this as my best cab experience… first because this wine is going to improve with age and second because of when I'm going to open it – state of mind plays a tremendous role. If you haven't seen this episode check it out and then hit up their site too. Susan could be my second favorite guest (Sasha being number one obviously). The runner up was the Caymus Special Selection I treated myself to when I finished my thesis.

Too many great moments to pick a 'moment'. Was it the presence, in private of winemakers/owners, such as Nils, Dave del Dotto, Robt. Kamen, Bernard Portet, Robin Lail,etc,etc. Or the wine? First (young) taste of Silver Oak (v.'82)? Haut Brion (v.'85). Or the company shared?
Through the 80's, and much of 90's I played rock music, and had the pleasure of being kept company by very fun, interesting, and sometimes lovely friends. One time , summer '93, a particularly lovely young woman friend, Irish, stayed after the end of a party at my place. '88 Beaumont, of which I'd bought several bottles. This bottle didn't get finished that eve, despite it's being particularly better than the others. When I got around to finishing it a day later, it was even better! I was kinda on cloud nine all week long…
…just sayin'… there's so many things that associate w/ 'bests' of every stripe and category. Qualifying has that difficulty to me.

Gary-
I am stoked to grab some of the Villa Des Anges. I got hooked on French Cab when I lived there in the mid-late 90's. But please, please, please find a frenchman to teach you how to say “vin de pays” properly. Even my Russian ears quiver every time you pronounce it as you do.

I like this show! QOD: C&B allways fun and dependable.

Shifflet wines from Napa…. Went to visit Mr. Jeffery Shifflet at his house/garage/winerie. What a great guy. He let us taste his blend and his Cab. We went climbing in his garage to obtain the bottles…. We loved it so much that we brought some friends back there two days later. Upon arrival. 4 other couples were there tasting. It was the end of the day and everyone was feeling good. Needless to say, Jeffery ran out of glasses and we tasted out of chemisrty beakers…. We had such a great time, that we bought many cases and still enjoy the wine and experience to this day.

Ditto for me on the value Martini play. Also tried a 2006 Avalon which paled in comparison.