Estimate
... deep purple-black in color and offers an incredible perfume of lilacs, black truffles, violets and menthol over a core of cassis, mulberries and warm plums plus a waft of tobacco leaf. The palate is full-bodied and built like a brick house with very firm, very ripe tannins and oodles of freshness cutting through the earthy layers, finishing very long...
...dark and explosive on the palate, with tremendous thrust and intensity in all directions. Crushed rocks, menthol, crème de cassis, dark chocolate, pencil shavings and cured meats race out of the glass. Dense and potent...
Lots of pine forest, savory herbs, California bay leaf, and both black and blue fruits emerge...full-bodied, singular wine...perfectly balanced, with beautiful concentration and the purity and balance that’s the hallmark of this great vintage...
...cassis, steeped blackberry and warmed plum reduction flavors at the core, slowly unwinding to reveal streaks of graphite, alder and smoldering tobacco on the finish...
I have not had many Howell Mountain cabernets like this with crushed blackberry and blueberry character. Nuanced. Full-bodied and extremely fine-textured. It goes on for minutes. Greatness.