97pts Wine Enthusiast - Editor's Choice

A Cabernet that exemplifies how the variety became so popular: classic, structural, aromatic, and finessed. An impossible find for the price, enjoy now for palate cleansing structure, or continue to age for deeper pleasure.

97pts Decanter

From brothers Stu and Charlie Smith comes their 2021 Estate Cabernet Sauvignon from Spring Mountain, a precise blend of 81.9% Cabernet Sauvignon, 17.7% Cabernet Franc, and 0.4% Petit Verdot. Aged for 18 months in 65% new French oak, with only 1,652 cases produced, this wine showcases the meticulous dry farming of their 15.4-hectare vineyard at a 2000ft elevation, with vines dating back to 1971. The 2021 vintage is yet another testament to their mastery, offering a purity and elegance that define these Cabernets, with impeccable structure for long-term cellaring. In 2021, the tannins are firm, soaring, built like sky-scrapers, yet remarkably well-integrated. The nose offers a beautiful black cherry and red currant potpourri, mingling with pressed wildflowers, sage, capsicum, and tobacco leaf. Juicy plum fruit intertwines with a graphite minerality, and while there’s notable density to the fruit, a fine backbone of crunchy acidity imparts a stunning lightness and lift. Readers seeking Napa Cabernets from the 2021 vintage with serious cellaring potential should consider stocking up on Smith Madrone's offerings, as these '21s are true cellar-worthy gems. 

94pts James Suckling

A staunch defender of the restrained, elegant style of Napa reds made in the 1970s, yet with a little more body and ripeness than wines from that era. Tasty, tangy black cherries and blackberries with accents of bay leaves, black olives, cedar and star anise. Firm tannins, good acidity and the potential for aging.

93pts Robert Parker's Wine Advocate

Marked on the nose by subtle herb and floral notes, the cherry-scented 2021 Cabernet Sauvignon is medium to full-bodied in the mouth, framed by firm tannins that promise a long evolution. Thankfully, the tannins are ripe and silky on the finish, where that dusty quality is joined by attractive hints of licorice. It's a classic Spring Mountain Cab, capable of 20 years of cellaring.

92pts Jeb Dunnuck

This cuvee always has a Bordeaux like vibe, and the 2021 Cabernet Sauvignon Spring Mountain District is no exception, revealing a semi-opaque ruby hue as well as classic Cabernet notes of darker currants, cedar pencil, green tobacco, and damp earth. Reminding me of the estate's 2016, it has a very classic, medium-bodied, balanced profile, ripe and integrated tannins, and outstanding length. It picks up more floral and rose petal notes with time in the glass and is just a classy, old-school styled beauty that grows on your with time in the glass. It should keep for two decades in cold cellars.

Wine Spectator

Lighter-bodied than your typical Napa Cab, this offers expressive notes of mulled red currant, morello cherry, sweet bay and sassafras backed by hints of chalk and blood orange zest on the angular finish. Drink now through 2031. 1,652 cases made.

Tasting Notes

The wine opens with a luxurious yummy blue-black/red fruit aroma, which manages to be
floral and peppery, bright and lively, fetching and intriguing all at once.

On the palate the wine is packed with fruit. While medium weight the wine has a creamy lush mid-palate that is surprisingly full-bodied and mouth filling. Pleasantly grippy at the finish, this wine is built for the long run but as it stands now would be the perfect accompaniment for steak night.

About the Wine

Our Spring Mountain pedigree insures deliciously integrated tannins and a long life-span. For fifty years our wines have been sourced from the same vineyards, pruned, cultivated and harvested in the same manner, creating artisanal wines which are distinctive and complex. Our goal is to produce wines which bring pleasure to all the senses. 

Winery Notes

A tribute to the Smith brothers and the predominant tree on the ranch. The Madrone is an evergreen with a red-brown trunk and branches. In spring the tree bears lily-of-the-valley-like flower clusters; in fall orange-red berries appear.

All wines made entirely from the winery's dry-farmed estate vineyards surrounding the winery on top of Spring Mountain in the Napa Valley. Stuart Smith chose specific slopes with different exposures for specific varietals when planting the vineyards: eastern exposure for Riesling, southern and western exposures across flat stretches for the Cabernet Sauvignon and the coolest north-facing slopes for the Chardonnay. There are numerous historical sights on the ranch, as well as the huge array of natural beauty and wildlife.

Blend: 81.9% Cabernet Sauvignon, 17.7% Cabernet Franc, and 0.4% Petit Verdot.