Wineguider wine reviews

Today we review a Napa Valley cabernet sauvignon that sells at Total Wine and a few other places.  It has no vintage, meaning the grapes come from various years.  It is 14.8% alcohol.  Total Wine prices it at $27.

So — “cult” wines in general are highly sought-after and even more highly-priced wines, usually red, the stuff that drives rich winos crazy, making them willing to pay almost anything for their heavenly goodness.

This Napa Valley cabernet has taken the name — but have they incorporated the essence of a cult wine?  The answer:

No.  At $27, this stuff is painfully average.  Emphasis on “pain.”  I paid $27 for this, as I took in the Total Wine flyer that said it’s their #2 selling wine.  Wow, it must be good!   Wrong.  I mean, sure, it’s good.  But it’s not $27-Total-Wine good.  It’s got nice tannins, leaving a good, clean finish after your hopeful gulps.  There is no trashy typical-California-cheap-red-wine goulash taste left behind.  Just crisp, black-fruited alcohol.  But “cult” wine?  I don’t think so.

Is this wine a fraud?  A sham?  A crass, insulting, greedy play for your hard-earned cash, promising heaven but delivering only a competent $15 red?  Well, I didn’t say any of those things, I just asked the questions.  Like Fox News’ Neil Cavuto asking “George W. Bush — Best President Ever?”  I mean, they are just questions.

Not recommended.