2016 Cabernet Sauvignon

I was quite simply blown away by the wines I tasted from Cornell this year. It wasn’t that long ago that I didn’t include these wines in my regional reports because they weren’t interesting enough. Somewhere around 2013, things started to change for the better. Today, Cornell is one of the most exciting and dynamic estate wineries in northern California. The rugged hillside vineyard lies on Spring Mountain, just beyond Pride, on the Sonoma side of the mountain, a part of Sonoma that is especially well suited to the cultivation of Bordeaux varieties. Winemaker Elizabeth Tangney and Consulting Winemaker Françoise Peschon are doing brilliant work. The 2017 turned out beautifully, while the 2018 may very well turn out to be epic. Readers who enjoy the more classically-leaning side of Napa/Sonoma Cabernet will absolutely adore these wines. Kudos to Henry and Vanessa Cornell for their unrelenting drive to excellence. The results of many years of hard work and significant investment are in the glass.

Henry and Vanessa Cornell have been on a roll since around 2013. I can still remember the days, not too long ago, when these wines from the Sonoma side of Spring Mountain were lackluster. The level of explosive improvement here, in just the last few vintages, is one of the great success stories in Northern California. The winemaking team is headed by Françoise Peschon, who is easily the most selective of Napa Valley's elite winemakers/consulting winemakers, as she only works with small estate-focused wineries and chooses her projects with a level of rigor that is uncommonly rare. Elizabeth Tangney is now the day to day winemaker and brings her considerable viticultural experience to the team. A classic approach to winemaking that includes submerged cap fermentation gives these wines a sense of elegance that is compelling. The 2015 is just as beautiful as it always has been, but the 2016 is the wine that establishes Cornell as a truly elite property in California. I also tasted the 2017 from two potential core blends, both of them quite promising.

Henry and Vanessa Cornell have spared no expense in developing their sprawling property on the Sonoma side of Spring Mountain. After many years of ups and downs, the 2015 Cabernet Sauvignon is the first wine that fully expresses the potential of this rugged, hillside estate. The 2016 is another step in the right direction. Consulting winemaker Françoise Peschon has done a tremendous job in overseeing the significant improvements in farming and winemaking that are driving quality today. These two Cabernets are flat-out gorgeous.