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Sale
Red
750ml
Bottle: $64.83 $65.68
12 bottles: $63.53
Deep garnet-purple in color, the 2014 Cabernet Sauvignon Declaration has intense blackcurrant cordial, blueberry pie...
12 FREE
WA
91
Sale
Red
750ml
Bottle: $33.11 $36.79
This bold Cabernet Sauvignon is harvested from vineyards across Napa Valley, warmer climate hillside vineyard fruit...
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Red
750ml
Bottle: $159.94
Made from 100% Cabernet Sauvignon, the 2018 Cabernet Sauvignon Sleeping Lady Vineyard is deep garnet-purple in color....
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WA
97
VM
97
Case only
Red
750ml - Case of 3
Bottle: $179.94
The personal project of winemaker Chris Phelps of Inglenook. Since his days at Dominus in the 1990s, he continues to...
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DC
98
WA
97
Red
750ml
Bottle: $89.90
6 bottles: $88.10
Ripe and focused, with a core of raspberry, mulberry and black currant pate de fruit notes that meld nicely with...
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WS
93
Red
750ml
Bottle: $97.45
6 bottles: $95.50
12 FREE
Case only
Red
750ml - Case of 12
Bottle: $195.00
The inky hued 2019 Cabernet Sauvignon Erba Vineyard, which includes 15% Petit Verdot, comes all from Atlas Peak (next...
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JD
95
Case only
Red
750ml - Case of 12
Bottle: $192.95
Coming from a vineyard on Pritchard Hill, just across from Colgan, the 2019 Cabernet Sauvignon Melanson Vineyard is a...
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JD
96
WA
95
Case only
Red
750ml - Case of 12
Bottle: $195.00
The 2019 Cabernet Sauvignon Sage Ridge is another inky hued wine from Bevan and offers lots of ultra-ripe black...
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JD
94
Red
750ml
Bottle: $218.95
3 bottles: $214.57
The 2018 Cabernet Sauvignon is dark and brooding, earthy and layered. Notes of petrichor, cedar box, dusty savory...
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Sale
Rapid Ship
Red
750ml
Bottle: $104.57 $109.20
12 bottles: $103.74
The 2018 Cabernet Sauvignon is a charming, sweetly fruited effort with loads of character. First produced in 1985 and...
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JD
91
Case only
Red
750ml - Case of 12
Bottle: $44.94
92-94 The 2019 Cabernet Sauvignon is a blend of 88% Cabernet Sauvignon, 6% Merlot and 6% Cabernet Franc. Deep...
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WA
94
Case only
Red
1.5Ltr - Case of 6
Bottle: $82.65
Aromas of blackcurrants, iodine, oyster shell, and dark chocolate. Medium- to full-bodied with polished fine tannins...
JS
94
WA
92
Case only
Red
750ml - Case of 12
Bottle: $43.20
Aromas of blackcurrants, iodine, oyster shell, and dark chocolate. Medium- to full-bodied with polished fine tannins...
JS
94
WA
92
Case only
Red
750ml - Case of 12
Bottle: $70.20
92-94 Amici's 2021 Cabernet Sauvignon Reserve will spend 22 months in oak before bottling. It features deep cedar and...
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WA
94
VM
94
Red
750ml
Bottle: $75.94
6 bottles: $74.42
Saturated flavors of black cherries, black olives, dark chocolate and tobacco are wrapped in velvety, persistent...
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WE
94
JS
92
Case only
Red
1.5Ltr - Case of 6
Bottle: $181.94
96-97 This is a very beautiful red with currant and berry character. Very fine and polished tannins, too. The impact...
JS
97
Case only
Red
1.5Ltr - Case of 6
Bottle: $158.94
A full-bodied cabernet sauvignon that’s fruity on the nose with notes of crushed raspberries, berries and herbs....
JS
96
JD
95
Sale
Red
750ml
Bottle: $104.93 $105.60
12 bottles: $102.83
Made from 100% Cabernet Sauvignon, the 2019 NVD Cabernet Sauvignon is deep garnet-purple in color, giving up notes of...
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WA
95
JD
95
Rapid Ship
Red
750ml
Bottle: $39.93
12 bottles: $39.13
The 2018 Atlas Peak AVA Cabernet Sauvignon is stunning, displaying a deep garnet color that immediately captures the...
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Altesse Cabernet Sauvignon Mavrodaphne United States California Napa Valley Wine

In the Archaea region, high in the Northern Peloponnese mountains, the predominant grape varietal grown is the prized Mavrodaphne. Meaning 'Black Laurel', the Mavrodaphne grapes have extremely dark skins, and ripen slowly under the Greek sunshine, helped by the mineral rich soils the vines thrive in. This grape varietal is mostly used to produce the opaque, inky fortified wine of the same name, which is popular all over Greece and elsewhere in the world. This fortified wine allows the grapes to really show off their complex and fascinating flavors, which range from a rich marzipan to flavors of bitter chocolate, sweet coffee, dried figs and prunes, as well as plenty of jammy fruit notes.

Mavrodaphne is produced in a traditional method which involves leaving the grape juice exposed to the sun in large vats, before having its fermentation halted by the addition of various distillates taken from previous successful vintages. This mixture contains plenty of residual sugar, which gives the end result its characteristic sticky sweetness, and also helps with the next fermentation process, which typically takes place in large underground cellars. The final product is a heady drink, absolutely bursting with unusual, rich and sweet flavors and carried in a dark and slightly viscous Port-like liquid.

Mavrodaphne grapes are also used for the production of still red wines, but are generally blended with varietals such as Agiorgitiko or imported grapes like Cabernet Sauvignon. Mavrodaphne grapes are excellent for mellowing more acidic varieties, and producing deliciously rounded wines, which have taken the international market by storm in recent decades.

Additional Information on Greek Wines


Greek Wines
Ancient Greek Wines – A Brief History of Wine in Greece
The Myth of Dionysus, Greek God of Wine
What is Retsina?

Of all the New World wine countries, perhaps the one which has demonstrated the most flair for producing high quality wines - using a combination of traditional and forward-thinking contemporary methods - has been the United States of America. For the past couple of centuries, the United States has set about transforming much of its suitable land into vast vineyards, capable of supporting a wide variety of world-class grape varietals which thrive on both the Atlantic and the Pacific coastlines. Of course, we immediately think of sun-drenched California in regards to American wines, with its enormous vineyards responsible for the New World's finest examples of Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot based wines, but many other states have taken to viticulture in a big way, with impressive results. Oregon, Washington State and New York have all developed sophisticated and technologically advanced wine cultures of their own, and the output of U.S wineries is increasing each year as more and more people are converted to their produce.

California as a wine producing region has grown in size and importance considerably over the past couple of centuries, and today is the proud producer of more than ninety percent of the United States' wines. Indeed, if California was a country, it would be the fourth largest producer of wine in the world, with a vast range of vineyards covering almost half a million acres. The secret to California's success as a wine region has a lot to do with the high quality of its soils, and the fact that it has an extensive Pacific coastline which perfectly tempers the blazing sunshine it experiences all year round. The winds coming off the ocean cool the vines, and the natural valleys and mountainsides which make up most of the state's wine regions make for ideal areas in which to cultivate a variety of high quality grapes.

When it comes to New World wines, and especially wines from the United States of America, Napa Valley is something of a standard bearer. Over its relatively short history, it has managed to transform itself from being a fairly insignificant region, to becoming one of the most important and highly regarding wine locations on earth. With an ideal climate for viticulture, blazing sunshine and a low level of rainfall, this valley is shielded on many sides by mountain ranges which help it maintain a consistent level of heat, light and moisture throughout the year. Today, Napa Valley is a home of innovation and quality, with dozens of grape varietals thriving in the fertile soils. However, the main varietals grown there have always been Cabernet Sauvignon, Chardonnay, Pinot Noir, Merlot and Zinfandel, and the wines they produce are constantly lauded by critics and competitions across the globe.