2019 Rudd Oakville, Samantha's Cabernet Sauvignon, California, USA
Critics reviews
The 2019 Samantha's Cabernet Sauvignon was aged for 22 months in French oak, 50% of it new.
Deep garnet-purple in color, it prances out with gregarious notes of Morello cherries, warm cassis, and wild blueberries plus suggestions of lavender, damp soil, and charcoal with a waft of dried roses. Medium to full-bodied, the palate is very tightly knit with loads of red, black, and blue fruit layers, supported by exquisitely ripe, fine-grained tannins and seamless freshness, finishing long and perfumed. 637 cases were made.
Drink 2026 - 2055
Lisa Perrotti-Brown MW, The Wine Independent (June 2022)
A lovely and soft pure cabernet with currants, hints of cedar, dust, hints of mint, and cherry. Medium to full body, creamy and delicious already. Fruit with tile and dust. Linear and fine tannins.
Drink or hold
James Suckling, JamesSuckling.com (December 2022)
About this WINE
Rudd Oakville Estate
Rudd Estate was founded in 1996 by Leslie Rudd and has become one of Napa Valley's most exciting wineries. This multi-generational operation produces wine in extremely small batches, operating from a site characterized by iconic red volcanic soils. This limited production ensures that the Rudd Estate team can provide complete attention to detail in every bottle.
Although red Bordeaux varietals (Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, and Merlot) are a key focus for the Rudd Estate team, some white grapes are also grown – a rarity in the Oakville area. Many of Rudd Estate's vineyard sites are located across the slopes of Mt. Veeder; this high elevation means they have a refined freshness and elegance not generally associated with the rich, bold wines of Napa Valley.
Samantha Rudd took over the reins of the estate in 2018. She has implemented organic and biodynamic practices across the Rudd Estate winery as a champion. Many of the vineyards are now being farmed with these principles in mind. Innovation is a driving force for Samantha; in 2016, she also introduced the Unlikely Collaborators Residency Programme to Rudd Estate, encouraging individuals with backgrounds in the arts, science, or business to volunteer to collaborate with them.
Oakville
Oakville is a renowned wine region in the heart of Napa Valley, California, USA. It is considered one of the premier appellations for producing high-quality Cabernet Sauvignon wines. The favourable climate, diverse soil types, and skilled winemaking practices have contributed to Oakville’s reputation as a top wine-producing area.
The primary grape variety is Cabernet Sauvignon, which thrives in the region’s warm climate and well-drained soils. However, you can also find other Bordeaux varietals such as Merlot, Cabernet Franc, Petit Verdot, and Malbec, as well as some white wine grapes like Chardonnay and Sauvignon Blanc.
Oakville benefits from a Mediterranean climate with warm, sunny days and cool nights. The region’s proximity to San Pablo Bay allows for morning fog, which provides natural cooling, making it ideal for slow grape ripening and flavour development.
The diverse soils add to the complexity of the wines produced. The region features a mix of volcanic, alluvial, and sedimentary soils that offer distinct characteristics to the grapes. The Napa River runs through the area, further enriching the soils with sediment deposits.
Oakville is home to some of the most prestigious and iconic wineries in Napa Valley. Prominent names like Robert Mondavi Winery, Opus One, Far Niente, Screaming Eagle, and Harlan Estate have put Oakville on the world wine map.
Winemakers in Oakville employ various traditional and modern winemaking techniques to ensure the highest quality wines. Careful grape selection, hand harvesting, small-lot fermentations, oak barrel aging, and blending are standard practices used to craft complex and balanced wines.
In recognition of the unique terroir and distinct characteristics of the wines produced, Oakville was designated as an American Viticultural Area (AVA) in 1993. This official appellation status further solidifies the region’s significance in the wine industry.
Cabernet Sauvignon
The most famous red wine grape in the world and one of the most widely planted.
It is adaptable to a wide range of soils, although it performs particularly well on well-drained, low-fertile soils. It has small, dusty, black-blue berries with thick skins that produce deeply coloured, full-bodied wines with notable tannins. Its spiritual home is the Médoc and Graves regions of Bordeaux where it thrives on the well-drained gravel-rich soils producing tannic wines with piercing blackcurrant fruits that develop complex cedarwood and cigar box nuances when fully mature.
The grape is widely planted in California where Cabernet Sauvignon based wines are distinguished by their rich mixture of cassis, mint, eucalyptus and vanilla oak. It is planted across Australia and with particular success in Coonawarra where it is suited to the famed Terra Rossa soil. In Italy barrique aged Cabernet Sauvignon is a key component in Super Tuscans such as Tignanello and Sassicaia, either on its own or as part of a blend with Sangiovese.
When is a wine ready to drink?
We provide drinking windows for all our wines. Alongside the drinking windows there is a bottle icon and a maturity stage. Bear in mind that the best time to drink a wine does also depend on your taste.
Not ready
These wines are very young. Whilst they're likely to have lots of intense flavours, their acidity or tannins may make them feel austere. Although it isn't "wrong" to drink these wines now, you are likely to miss out on a lot of complexity by not waiting for them to mature.
Ready - youthful
These wines are likely to have plenty of fruit flavours still and, for red wines, the tannins may well be quite noticeable. For those who prefer younger, fruitier wines, or if serving alongside a robust meal, these will be very enjoyable. If you choose to hold onto these wines, the fruit flavours will evolve into more savoury complexity.
Ready - at best
These wines are likely to have a beautiful balance of fruit, spice and savoury flavours. The acidity and tannins will have softened somewhat, and the wines will show plenty of complexity. For many, this is seen as the ideal time to drink and enjoy these wines. If you choose to hold onto these wines, they will become more savoury but not necessarily more complex.
Ready - mature
These wines are likely to have plenty of complexity, but the fruit flavours will have been almost completely replaced by savoury and spice notes. These wines may have a beautiful texture at this stage of maturity. There is lots to enjoy when drinking wines at this stage. Most of these wines will hold in this window for a few years, though at the very end of this drinking window, wines start to lose complexity and decline.
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Description
Only the most expressive plots of estate Cabernet Sauvignon make up this wine. The late Leslie Rudd dedicated this wine to his daughter, Samantha, who now owns and runs Rudd Estate. The nose is incredibly intense with a pure focus of blackcurrant. There is also an earthy edge which brings freshness and complexity. The palate is fine and crisp, with a sense of very small berries and juicy fruit. The more air you allow this wine, the more the core fills out – allowing the sweet yet balanced nature of the Cabernet to shine. The tannins relax into smoothness and glide on the palate. This 2019 really grows in the glass and after decanting; it is rather stunning.
Catriona Felstead MW, Senior Buyer, Berry Bros. & Rudd
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