2014 Cabernet Sauvignon Moulds Family Vineyard

Dakota Shy was just getting off the ground when Tom Garrett made these wines. The 2014s have developed nicely. My impression is that future vintages will be even better.

These are four gorgeous wines from Dakota Shy, the new project headed by Todd Newman, Tom Garrett and Ryan Clark. Readers might want to refer to my reviews of the 2013s for more background on the principals and how Dakota Shy came together.

Dakota Shy is one of the most exciting young projects I have tasted in some time. Getting something new started in Napa Valley is not at all easy considering the cost of fruit, intense competition and increasingly strict regulatory environment, all of which is a testament to what Todd Newman and Tom Garrett have achieved thus far. Newman acquired his love of Napa Valley working in restaurants, including the iconic, now-closed Martini House. Newman brings passion, work ethic and humility - a pretty good mix in my book - to Dakota Shy. Newman was selling wine out of the tasting room at Revana where he met Garrett. In 2008, Newman cobbled together his savings, bought some fruit and founded Dakota Shy. Garrett's family owns the famed Detert Vineyard, which old maps show lie within the boundaries of To-Kalon. Garrett honed his craft at a number of stops, including Turley (where he met Thomas Brown), Phelps, Mondavi and Revana. Today, Garrett makes the Detert wines, which, as Vinous readers know, are terrific. General Manager Ryan Clark, whom I first met at Kelly Fleming a few years back, rounds out the team. These new releases are impressive, to say the least. The Napa Valley Cabernet is joined by bottlings from the Moulds Vineyard in Oak Knoll and the Social Currency, which is a blend of fruit from two sites in Mt. Veeder and Saint Helena. A third as yet unnamed Cabernet from a site on Howell Mountain joins the range in 2014. Stylistically, the wines are what I would describe as contemporary Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignons that offer a compelling interplay of richness and structure, with perhaps a slight leaning towards the more extroverted end of the spectrum. Imagine the Detert wines with a little more kick. Readers who have a chance won't want to miss these fabulous Cabernets.