2018 Cabernet Sauvignon

Braiden Albrecht and Andy Erickson showed me a stunning range of wines during my most recent visit. Probably the biggest development at Mayacamas in recent years has been a move to increasingly focus on estate fruit; although I must add that Bob Travers always purchased fruit from nearby ranches to augment his own production, so the inclusion of outside fruit has long been tradition here. The 2018s benefit from a long growing season that allowed for the full maturation of tannins, while the 2019s have a slightly firmer tannin. As for the 2019 Cabernet, well, it is shaping up to be magnificent.

This is a stellar set of new and upcoming releases at Mayacamas. The estate remains a work in progress following considerable redevelopment that began a few years ago. New estate blocks continue to come online, and as they do, they will change the profiles of the wines. For now, the Mayacamas wines remain blends of estate and non-estate fruit, mostly from nearby hillside properties, just as they were during the Bob Travers era.

Winemaker Braiden Albrecht describes 2018 and 2019 as pretty similar, especially for the whites. Harvest started a bit earlier in 2018 because of the warmer season and was spread out over a long period of time, whereas the 2019 harvest was more compact because many blocks ripened within a narrow window of time. Albrecht and consulting winemaker Andy Erickson have really dialed in these wines over the last few years. Mayacamas remains rooted in its rich history, but these are contemporary wines that have removed some of the rough edges that were at times penalizing.