Stature Sonoma County Cabernet Sauvignon 2018
"A barrel selection from two sites in Sonoma, aged in 75% new French oak, the 2018 Cabernet Sauvignon Stature is a brilliant 99.9% Cabernet Sauvignon release. Crème de cassis, dark plums, tobacco, violets, and roasted coffee and cocoa all emerge from this full-bodied, deep, seamless effort that has awesome depth of fruit as well as an undeniable elegance.” — Randy Ullom, Winemaster
Acclaim
93 points, JebDunnuck.com, July 2021
The flagship release from this estate, the 2018 Cabernet Sauvignon Stature offers up a dense purple hue to go with lots of pure cassis and darker berry fruits as well as notes of chocolate, classy oak, and tobacco. Rich, medium to full-bodied, and wonderfully balanced, it shows the more elegant, focused, structured side to the vintage and will drink nicely for 15 years if properly stored.
2017 vintage
95 points, Antonio Galloni, Vinous, April 2020
At just 200 cases, the 2017 Cabernet Sauvignon Stature is the smallest production Cabernet in the Kendall-Jackson range. It is a blend of fruit from Kellogg in Knights Valley and Alden in Alexander Valley - a combination that works beautifully. Ripe red and purplish fruit, wild flowers, mint and blood orange give the 2017 striking layers of nuance. This is such a pretty and expressive wine.
2016 Vintage
94+ points, Jeb Dunnuck, JebDunnuck.com, May 2019
The 2016 Cabernet Sauvignon Stature could be thought of as the flagship cuvée. It’s 60% from Alexander Valley and 40% from Knights Valley. Made from 100% Cabernet Sauvignon that was brought up in 60% new French oak, it’s a pure, classic, beautiful wine that has textbook cassis fruit as well as loads of graphite, lead pencil, smoky oak, tobacco, and even a hint of orange blossom. Medium to full-bodied, concentrated, with fine tannins and terrific purity of fruit, it’s approachable today yet will be better with 2-4 years of bottle age and keep for 15+ years.
94 points, Antonio Galloni, Vinous, May 2019
The 2016 Cabernet Sauvignon Stature is gorgeous. Racy and sumptuous, the 2016 is impressive in the early going, but also has the potential to develop nicely in the coming years. Silky tannins wrap around a core of dark fruit in a flamboyant yet impeccably balanced Cabernet Sauvignon. Mocha, black cherry, leather, smoke and licorice grace this impeccable, layered Cabernet.
94 points, Lisa Perrotti-Brown, Robert Parker Wine Advocate, Feb 2019
Made of 100% Cabernet aged 19 months in 61% new French oak, the deep garnet-purple colored 2016 Stature Cabernet Sauvignon is a little closed to begin, opening slowly to reveal fresh black currants, warm plums and wild blueberries scents with touches of garrigue, wood smoke, menthol and oolong tea plus touches of tar and tilled earth. Firm, full-bodied and built like a brick house, it has loads of black and red fruit layers with a ripe, grainy texture and a very long, mineral-laced finish. Should age gracefully!
Winemaking
Cold-soaked for 4 days and fermented for 16 days translates to concentrated flavor and color, added layers of complexity, and lush, voluptuous tannin development. After gentle pressing, the wine was racked directly into small French oak barrels (59% new) and aged for 21 months in thin-staved, heavily-toasted Chateau-style barrels adding rich, balanced oak accents, a rounded texture and a serious, lingering, integrated finish.
Vineyards
Much of Sonoma County’s reputation for outstanding Bordeaux-style varietals can be attributed to the stellar combination of rich complex fruit and tannins. The intense dark full berry tones and concentrated tannins of the Cabernet Sauvignon are coming from the mountains, hillsides and ridges of Alexander Valley and Knights Valley. The area is comprised of volcanic and rocky soil, being brick red in Alexander Valley and beige in Knights Valley along the slopes of Mount Saint Helena.
