Jam Cellars
California Cabernet Sauvignon
California, USA
The blurb says this wine is “all about the fruit,” but it’s really mostly about the oak. Cellared and bottled in the California town of Acampo, the 2014 JaM hits the black keys, mainly. It's dark to a fault, almost black in the glass and loaded with blackberry and black plum aromas. The nose also shows the oak that is used to chisel off the edges of this 15.1% abv wine. Sweet vanilla is the predominant aroma. It's also a big player on the palate, which maybe helps a high alcohol wine smooth out a bit, but it buries the grape. A 100% Cabernet Sauvignon wine should have plenty of Cab to spare, but here it's hiding behind a few staves of oak. It's pleasant enough, though, if you like - as Crosby, Stills and Nash said - “wooden music.”.
The blurb says this wine is “all about the fruit,” but it’s really mostly about the oak. Cellared and bottled in the California town of Acampo, the 2014 JaM hits the black keys, mainly. It's dark to a fault, almost black in the glass and loaded with blackberry and black plum aromas. The nose also shows the oak that is used to chisel off the edges of this 15.1% abv wine. Sweet vanilla is the predominant aroma. It's also a big player on the palate, which maybe helps a high alcohol wine smooth out a bit, but it buries the grape. A 100% Cabernet Sauvignon wine should have plenty of Cab to spare, but here it's hiding behind a few staves of oak. It's pleasant enough, though, if you like - as Crosby, Stills and Nash said - “wooden music.”.
2 people found it helpfulNov 27th, 2016
Better that their Chardonnay.
Better that their Chardonnay.
1 person found it helpfulMay 28th, 2017
(Y) $<15. Works for the price. Screw top makes it a convenient carry along in case you need a drink in a hurry and aren't packing a cork screw.
(Y) $<15. Works for the price. Screw top makes it a convenient carry along in case you need a drink in a hurry and aren't packing a cork screw.
Mar 23rd, 2018Nice cab. Cherry, berry, silky, pleasant tannin. Note of vanilla
Nice cab. Cherry, berry, silky, pleasant tannin. Note of vanilla
Feb 6th, 2018
Dark, “inky” color, aromas of blackberry, boysenberry, oak and vanilla. Flavors of smoke, blackberry jam and cedar. Solid Cab.
Dark, “inky” color, aromas of blackberry, boysenberry, oak and vanilla. Flavors of smoke, blackberry jam and cedar. Solid Cab.
Dec 25th, 2017
Enough oak to make it taste serious.
Enough oak to make it taste serious.
Oct 17th, 2017
Black fruit forward, medium body, more earthy after breathing for an hour
Black fruit forward, medium body, more earthy after breathing for an hour
Oct 6th, 2017