2021 Cabernet Sauvignon / 90 Points / James Suckling

The 2008 Cabernet Sauvignon shows earth and dark red berries on the nose. It’s a bit lighter in weight with less fruit than the younger vintages of this wine, but it’s well balanced with firm, round tannins. Fruit and oak are well integrated, and it’s drinking nicely now.

This annual post looks back at all the wines I wrote about in the previous year and singles out 50 that I thought were great wines. “Great” doesn’t necessarily imply the most profound, though several of these are as profound as wine gets; nor does it necessarily mean that these are the world’s famed wines intended for laying down in cellars for long aging. I don’t usually encounter such wines anyway.

Saturated ruby. The bouquet reveals explosive cassis and cedar aroma. The palate is silky and dense with sweet, expansive dark fruit flavors and a light earthy note. Well focused and tightly structured with still firm tannins finishing with lingering rich dark red fruit notes.