100pts Robert Parker's Wine Advocate

The 2019 J. Daniel Cuvée Cabernet Sauvignon is a barrel sample with a deep garnet-purple color. It needs a little coaxing to unlock pronounced blackcurrant preserves, Black Forest cake and stewed plums scents with hints of star anise, clove oil, unsmoked cigars and tilled soil with a waft of roses. Full-bodied, the palate explodes with vibrant black fruits, framed by wonderfully plush tannins and seamless freshness, finishing long and fragrant. Beautiful!  Range: 98-100

99pts Jeb Dunnuck

The 2019 Cabernet Sauvignon J. Daniel Cuvee is just about pure perfection and another example of Napa Valley magic. All Cabernet Sauvignon brought up in 80% new French oak, it offers an incredible bouquet of pure cassis and blackberry fruits as well as textbook Pauillac-like notes of graphite, tobacco, toasted spices, and chalky minerality. Rich, full-bodied, and powerful, it’s one of those wines that somehow marries incredible intensity and richness with no sensation of weight or heaviness, perfect balance, and a layered, multi-dimensional style that’s hard to describe. It shows more tannins and chocolaty oak with air and needs to be forgotten for 4-6 years, and it will be a 40+-year wine. It’s heavenly juice.

Winemaker Notes

J. Daniel Cuvée in vintage 2019 is a showstopper. Classic and intense aromas of blackberry jam, cassis and boysenberry puree lead to flavors that explode on the palate, with cascades of youthful black cherry, dark chocolate and black tea. This beauty is at the same time powerful and poised. It is seemingly endless on the finish, with gorgeous and fine tannins carrying it to a crescendo of lushness and generosity. It is seamless, pure and delicious.