Somm David T

Independent Sommelier/Wine Educator

9.4

I have written a few times regarding my tale of Caymus & Caymus Classic. Their vintages post 2011 and their vintages pre 2011.

I have at event tastings that Caymus was pouring, encouraged their staff to talk with Chuck to make both Caymus & Caymus Classic. Recently, I emailed them to pass on my thoughts to Chuck asking him to make both. If you liked Caymus the way it was, I encourage you to do the same. There is a dwelling amount of older, well preserved Caymus Classic vintages. info@wagnerfamilyofwine.com should you be so inclined.

Their post 2011 Caymus Cabernets are picked at higher brix and syrupy sweet. I get why Chuck changed. Many like sweeter Cabernets that drink easy young. That is not my wheelhouse.

In my intermediate wine days, I aged and enjoyed many pre 2012 vintages. This perfect bottle bought on the secondary market at around $70 is extremely well stored. The cork when I cut the foil looked slightly depressed, when I pulled it with an Ah-so was next to new.

I enjoyed this with a Ribcap, not the best wine for that steak but, ok. This 07 is more filet or NY Strip.

The nose shows; a very dark core of sweet currants. Ripe-lush-blackberries, black cherries, the blackest of plum to pudding, black raspberries, poached/slightly baked strawberries, circling raspberries, anise to black licorice, woven baking spices-cinnamon, clove, nutmeg & vanilla, caramel, dark chocolate, mellow dark spices, sweet tarriness & dark earth, dry crush limestone, moist, grey volcanic clays, dry top soil, dry tobacco, some sweet graphite, steeped black tea & withering/candied, dark, red flowers framed in liquid violets/lavender.

This bottle now nearly 18 years in bottle has not faded. It is at its precipice and will hold a few yrs. 2007 a grand Napa vintage. Decanted a little over an hour and enjoyed over the next 90-120 minutes. With this experience, another hour in the decanter is even better.

M-M+ velvety, rounded, tannins. The palate is round, ripe, lush, ruby fruits of; dark core of sweet currants. Ripe-lush; blackberries, black cherries, the blackest of plum to pudding, stewed plum, black raspberries, poached/slightly baked strawberries, circling raspberries with notes of liqueur overtones, anise to black licorice, woven baking spices-cinnamon, clove, nutmeg & vanilla, caramel, dark chocolate, black licorice, dark berry cola, distinct dark, Caynus Classic spices w/ palate heat, herbaceous notes, sweet tarriness & dark earth, dry crush limestone/rock, moist, grey volcanic clays, dry top soil, dry river stone, charcoal, notes of menthol, dry tobacco, leather, dry oak barrel shavings, some sweet graphite, steeped black tea & withering/candied, dark, red flowers framed in liquid violets/lavender, perfect, round acidity with an incredibly; balanced, well knitted-toned-structured, elegantly/smartly polished finish that goes on and on and long sets on beautiful earth & spice.

94+ This experience is becoming rarer & rarer. — 6 months ago

Andrew Schirmer

9.6

Stunning bottle - showed really well after 3 hours or so. Maturing, integrated tannin, structured, a nose you wanna swim in… — 10 months ago

with Alsu

Norma Normington

9.5

So beautiful on the nose, blackberries, cranberries - zero bitterness. Glorious on the palate. Deep Jammie’s with a hint of acidity. — 4 years ago

Alberto Cdm

8.9

1983 at Del Posto. Original degorgement. So so... — 9 years ago

John R. Jacob

9.5

Love this wine. Decant and enjoy a complex Cabernet that feels so right. — 10 years ago

with Karen

Pierre Arneaux

9.2

Wow. More flavor, much better than their regular cab. Silky, velvet, smooth. Chocolate. Rich fruit. Big, full flavor, lots of flavor. Not old world style for sure, not subtle. It's a big bomb. We would pay up to $75 for this so a bit overpriced to us.
— 10 years ago

Greg Gregory

9.4

So fresh and precise. — 11 years ago

Greg Koslosky

9.7

Never had a Champagne with so much exotic mushroom character , paired with an exotic mushroom tart from our friend Christie Gronseth! — 11 years ago

Nathaniel DiMaggio

9.2

2011. Just some delicious juice. So easy to drink. Thank you 11 Madison! — 12 years ago

Alan Hyde

9.2

Of course it was good but a bit disappointing considering the reputation. Just a slight amount of tannins still detectable so I think it was about ready to drink. — 7 months ago

Jay Kline

9.5

It’s been a couple of years since I last encountered the 2001 vintage of Chave’s Hermitage. That bottle was a library release from the domaine and so is this example. Splash decanted directly before service. The 2001 pours a garnet color with a translucent core; medium viscosity with significant staining of the tears. On the nose, the wine is vinous and a total umami bomb: Koji beef broth, dried and baked brambles, dried purple flowers, black pepper, Kalamata olive, organic and inorganic earth along with fine warm spices. On the palate, the wine is dry with medium+ tannin and medium+ acid. Confirming the notes from the nose. The finish is long. Looking back on my notes from 2024, there’s a common theme: the 2001 is all about dat bass. Drink now with some patience and through 2041. — 7 months ago

Ericsson

9.7

Yes—exactly that kind of wine: timeless, composed, and quietly authoritative.

It smells so good on first pour. Damp pine forest floor and clean mountain air register immediately. Everything else unravels from there; but that initial pop-and-pour sniff is pure magic.

On the palate, blackcurrant, cedar, graphite, and dried herbs unfold with control, carried by freshness and finely etched tannins in a medium body.

So classic, so intellectual, and deeply mesmerizing. Drink now or age. — 8 months ago

Brandon Boesch

9.7

Unbelievable. So much flavor, so light yet good texture and long finish. Probably my favorite. — a year ago

Dan

9.5

Golden perhaps almost orange color. Lemon, cream, yeast, richer fruit, great balance and acidity, just so smooth to drink, hard to pick up nuanced tertiary notes but so delicious. — 4 years ago

Matthew Hughes

9.2

Yes. So tasty but better than that, it reminds me of the steak dinner when I tried these in late vintages for the first time.... — 9 years ago

with Jay and Ed

Les Huisman

9.2

From magnum. Breaking in Tim's cellar.
So fleshy yet — 10 years ago

with Tim, Karl and 1 other

Denise Collins

9.5

My love for Krug knows no bounds. Bready, yeasty notes jump out of the glass towards you but quickly soften into those of honey butter. Ginger and spice notes. Lees driven but well integrated with medium high acid. This champagne is so complex that it's almost impossible to truly detect where one note of flavor ends and the other begins. — 11 years ago

Emily Hauptman

10

Loved this wine!! So smooth!! — 11 years ago

Mac Riding

9.8

Probably my most favorite! Not inexpensive at restaurants ($65-$76), but pairs so well with just about anything. Year after year it is consistently great. It's hard not to share it, but then you must keep multiple bottles in stock! — 12 years ago

with Heidi

Alan Hyde

9.3

Legendary reputation so I had to try it. A symphony of stewed red and dark fruit. That said, the nose and other aspects didn’t grab me. Very good but would not repeat. — 7 months ago

Peter Rosenfeld

9.6

2005 awesome. Dark flavours and so smooth — 8 months ago

John Van Trijp

9.7

Weekend with Friends and average wines…😎 10.45 in the morning so time to start day 2…. — 8 months ago

Anna Filipovich

9.3

Deep, elegant Super Tuscan now firmly in its tertiary phase. Nose leans more to leather, tobacco, dried herbs and balsamic notes, with the red cherry and plum fruit clearly in the background. Medium‑plus body and acidity, fine chalky tannins; savoury flavours of dried red fruit, cedar and spice carry through on a long, resolved finish. Showing peak complexity today and unlikely to improve further with cellaring, so firmly in the drink‑now camp. — 9 months ago

Alessandro Dalle Carbonare

9.8

So elegant Montrose. It builds up an epic journey in the aftertaste. Rich and opulent as usual but with a fine touch of incredible level.
Softer extraction resulted on a fruitier, more sapid and rounder wine than usual. It feels it’s going to be approachable in its youth. — 2 years ago

Ian Hamel

9.4

2021/3-4. Really lovely - at 20, it is indeed Burgundian in its open, red fruit character, but it still has that hot-stone Chateauneuf character. I’m so glad I kept a few of these - I now have just one more left. Considering the price has doubled, I don’t know how many more I’ll get to lay down, so I’ll look forward to that last bottle of 2001 with a mix of excitement and sadness. — 5 years ago

Deni

9.4

Absolutely amazing. Lots of good brett. Balanced and delicious. Great dark fruit aromas and flavors. So smooth. Medium high tannins and acidity. Perfect silky texture. A little funk on the nose and palate (positive). Aroma and flavors are out of this world. Leather bag full of cherries and raspberries. Blend: Cabernet Sauvignon, Cinsault and Carmenere. Complex. Delicious 13.5% abv — 10 years ago

Bryan Thomas

9.4

2008 - so much Chablis character. Length for days! Hard not to guess this as grand cru — 10 years ago

with Paul

Tim O'Rourke

9.6

What? So good. All the olive and pepper and leather that you would expect and plenty of game and mushroom as well. I don't suppose I'll have another chance to taste this, so I'll have to rely on memory of something so delicious. — 11 years ago

Chris Tyler

9.3

2012 - HT to @Lyle Fass for bringing these in. So light in color it was almost a rose. Pine needles and resin on the nose. Nice medium plus body. Delicious and unique! — 11 years ago

Anthony Weytjens

Winemaker & Estate Manager at Edge Hill Estate

9.7

Great wine! Took about 45 min to open up but when it did... Wow! So amazed with still having black fruit flavors behind the cigar and moroccan leather! — 13 years ago