Joe Flo

9.5

Realm seems to have figured out the difficult 2022 vintage. — 2 months ago

Steven Lee

9.4

blue fruit. mineral and chalky. — 3 months ago

Randall Hopkins

Winegrower Co-Winemaker and Owner Corvus Vineyard and Corvus Cellars

9.4

Well balanced and aged beautifully. Did this in a blind tasting and guessed 2007-2009 as the fruit was still so prominent and pronounced but in a nice way. Tannins were so well integrated and there was still nice structure. Crowd pleaser! — 4 months ago

Somm David T

Independent Sommelier/Wine Educator

9.2

After reading the story of this producer, I inspired to try it. Especially, at $59.99 for a quality Napa Cabernet. These two brother’s are true pioneers of the Napa Valley. They do their own thing. Don’t follow trends and are not aggressive with their bottle price, nor do they really wish to. More rare than common in today’s Napa Cabernet market. I have a lot of respect for that and Napa Pioneers.

This also drinks pretty well for a young Napa Cabernet. I was expecting bigger/bolder based on write up. Not that this won’t benefit from cellaring.

The fruits are nicely ripe; blackberries, black raspberries, dark cherries, strawberries, cherries & blueberry hues. I was expecting more teeth. Think it is showing the finesse & balance of most 21’s I’ve had. Dark spice, grilled meats, light black pepper, barrel dust, dry tobacco, leather, savory herbaceousnes, moist clays, dry crushed rocks, cola, flower bouquet of red, blue & purple fresh flowers, rainfall acidity with a well balanced, softly structured, elegant finish that lasts just over a minute and lands crushed rocks and touch of spice.

It will be interesting to see if this shows more in 5 years.

Photos of; Smith Madrone vineyards and brothers Stuart and Charles Smith — 5 months ago

Freddy R. Troya

9.4

The V.2022 Esprit de Tablas is the flagship red blend of 40% Mourvèdre, 28% Grenache, 22% Syrah, 4% Vaccarèse, 3% Cinsaut and 3% Counoise selected from the top 6-estate-grown varieties propagated from budwood cuttings from the Château de Beaucastel Estate in Rhône, France.

An absolute crowd-pleaser in all aspects; the nose welcomes aromatic dark red fruits, black forrest, earthy and spices. As for the palate, it is rich and bold, yet fruit-forward slightly juicy with a hint of licorice, minty and lushy. Great acidity and structure with progressive tannins towards the back-end. Loved the texture and some sweet spices by the very end. — 7 months ago

Freddy R. Troya

9.5

A Burgundian-styled Cab Sauv from the one of the most compelling Sub AVA of Napa mountains (Mayacamas) which has an amazing soil and solid influence from the Pacific. Crafted with an amazing balance of 68% Cab Sauv, 20% Merlot, 5% and the rest to round it off its structure and age ability. The 2011 is still climbing to its peak. Enticing notes of dry red fruits on the nose and mouth, delicate, outstandingly silky and nearly perfect balance!
The finish shows its beauty. (if you find it, it won’t disappoint you) it will give the run for the money. — 9 months ago

Robert Stackowiak

9.4

At 6 years old, smooth and reflective of the volcanic terroir. Dark cherry, tobacco. September 2025. — 2 months ago

Tom Garland

9.4

Poetry wine Dinner at Cliff Lede winery. Shot of the Poetry hillside vinyard.

WINES
2022 Cliff Lede sav blanc
2022 Cliff Lede Crossfade..cab & cab franc
2024 Cliff Lede Marla Blanc..semillon
2022 Cliff Lede Rhythm cab sav
2022 Cliff Lede Poetry cab sav
2012 Cliff Lede Poetry cab sav

FOOD
App:
Gilled peach/burrata crostini, ahi tuna tartare, mini beef wellington, mushroom duxelles.
Main:
Heirloom tomato and melon salad
Pappardelle with wild mushrooms
Grilled Creekstone farm filet
Dark chocolate tart — 3 months ago

with Brenda

Brian Hearty

9.3

2007. Big, rich, dark fruits and oak! Great on its own, but I liked the Red Cap a little better. — 5 months ago

Scott@Mister A’s-San Diego

9.1

2022 vintage. Last year's vintage more than justified the pricing. This one, not so much. 06.11.25. — 5 months ago

Taylor Brody

10

Fantastic wine. Had it in Jackson with the daughter. 10/10 — 6 months ago

Andrew Cullimore

8.9

Deep garnet with terracotta . Quite rich concentrated nose , slightly roasted spicy , oaky nose, cassis , dark plum , quite rich and dense. Slightly sweet on the palate , but with red plum , spiced orange rind , cassis , cacao . A bit alcoholic on the palate too. Quite rounded , but gritty tannins and just balanced acidity . Slightly Foursquare on the finish , with spiced cherry , cacao . Drink now and over the next 5 years or so . — 8 months ago

Neil Valenzuela

9.6

Deep ruby color. Aromas of cassis, blackberry and earthy notes. Plum, cherry and oak on the palate. So good! — 9 months ago

Thomas M. Bozzuto

9.4

Superb. Had with duck — 2 months ago

Kelley Raymond

9.2

Well worth the price - deep color and smooth finish — 2 months ago

Vasanth Balakrishnan

9.0

Gratifying Oak Knoll #napavalley #merlot - medium plus body, calibrated acidity, some vanilla and toasty oak notes so it’s pretty young but well executed Merlot. My hot take - Merlot at the $50 retail mark will outperform Cabs at this price point. — 4 months ago

Jason Phillips

9.1

Dark ruby with purple edges. Great nose, full bodied, good oak. — 5 months ago

Scott@Mister A’s-San Diego

9.0

2022 vintage. Good, not great. The 2021 with more intensity/grip and life. 06.11.25. — 5 months ago

David Walser

9.5

I bought some corked bottles and some screw cap bottles. This is for the corked one. At 13 years old it’s tasting great! I’m expecting the screw caps to be just as good. — 6 months ago

Pinotman /// Andreas

9.1

Beautiful and light on its feet. Dry - very well made! Fantastic fruit. Very fresh. Honey. Meyer lemon, mandarine, just a faint touch of 1,1,6-trimethyl-1,2-dihydronaphthalene (TDN) aka Diesel. Touch bitter on the back palate. As a chemist i just had to bring this up. At 24 suns in Oceanside. 2 Michelin Chefs cooking. Grab this bargain before it is gone!!!!!! — 8 months ago