Hess The Lion Cabernet Sauvignon 2018

  • 95 James
    Suckling
  • 95 Robert
    Parker
  • 94 Wine
    Spectator
  • 92 Jeb
    Dunnuck
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Hess The Lion Cabernet Sauvignon 2018  Front Bottle Shot
Hess The Lion Cabernet Sauvignon 2018  Front Bottle Shot Hess The Lion Cabernet Sauvignon 2018  Front Label

Product Details


Varietal

Region

Producer

Vintage
2018

Size
750ML

ABV
14.8%

Features
Boutique

Your Rating

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Somm Note

Winemaker Notes

The Lion Cabernet Sauvignon consistently presents an eloquent expression of Mount Veeder fruit with an exceptional refinement in both flavor and texture. Once again this vintage proves to be outstanding, as rich, delicious notes of cassis and blackberry announce an elegantly structured wine. On the palate, concentrated layers of supple black cherry and plum marry with elements of dark chocolate and espresso. This wine is supported by mouthfilling tannins, and the oak influence is gracefully integrated and marked by subtle sweet vanilla notes on the long, satisfying finish.

Blend: 84% Cabernet Sauvignon, 16% Malbec

Professional Ratings

  • 95

    This is a rich cabernet-based red with roundness and generosity. Full and flavorful with currant, pine cone and vanilla and a juicy finish. 84% cabernet sauvignon and 16% malbec. Give this a few years to come together.

  • 95
    Blended with 16% Malbec and aged almost two years in 65% new French oak, Hess's 2018 Cabernet Sauvignon The Lion presents a striking purple hue in the glass. Scents of mocha and pencil shavings emerge, followed by snaky tendrils of cassis and blueberries and hints of sage and bay leaf. It's full-bodied and intense, with bold fruit, supple tannins and a bright, mouthwatering finish framed by soft tannins. While almost approachable now, it should be even better in five years and drink well for at least 10 more after that.
  • 94

    Gorgeously lush and seductive up front, showing açaí, blueberry and boysenberry compote flavors that are hefty but glide through, with anise, apple wood and fruitcake details that seemingly sparkle as it all cruises through the finish. Features a perfectly embedded graphite spine underneath it all, which should let this version evolve slowly in the cellar. Delivers a flashy display of fruit carried off with aplomb. Best from 2023 through 2038.

  • 92

    The 2018 Cabernet Sauvignon The Lion has lots of exotic red, blue, and black fruits as well as more cedarwood, spice, and tobacco-like aromatics. It's rich, medium to full-bodied, has good concentration, and enough tannins (which are classic Mt. Veeder) Rating: 92+

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Hess

The Hess Collection

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The Hess Collection, California
The Hess Collection Hess Collection Founder Donald Hess Winery Image

For over 40 years, The Hess Collection has been producing complex, elegant wines sourced from estate vineyards high on Mount Veeder and in the far reaches of the Napa Valley. It is from these rugged landscapes that The Hess Collection winemaking team crafts exceptional luxury wines. 

A pioneer by nature, Donald Hess was determined to defy convention and pursue winemaking at elevation. In 1978, he established The Hess Collection Winery on the site of one of the region’s oldest wineries on Mount Veeder. Although few in Napa Valley were cultivating vines at elevation, Donald Hess believed the volcanic slopes of Mount Veeder provided the ideal combination of soils and microclimates to yield elegant wines with rich, complex flavors.

Today, the next generation of The Hess family continues Donald’s legacy at the winery's home on Mount Veeder.

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A noble variety bestowed with both power and concentration, Cabernet Sauvignon enjoys success all over the globe, its best examples showing potential to age beautifully for decades. Cabernet Sauvignon flourishes in Bordeaux's Medoc where it is often blended with Merlot and smaller amounts of some combination of Cabernet Franc, Malbecand Petit Verdot. In the Napa Valley, ‘Cab’ is responsible for some of the world’s most prestigious, age-worthy and sought-after “cult” wines. Somm Secret—DNA profiling in 1997 revealed that Cabernet Sauvignon was born from a spontaneous crossing of Cabernet Franc and Sauvignon Blanc in 17th century southwest France.

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Mt. Veeder Wine

Napa Valley, California

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Centered at the peak for which it is named, Mount Veeder is Napa’s largest sub-AVA. But even though the entire appellation spreads over 16,000 acres, vineyards cover a mere 1,000. Scattered among Douglas firs and bristlecone pines, Mount Veeder vineyards extend south from the upper elevations of the Mayacamas Mountains—the highest point at 2,400 feet—to the border of the Carneros region. Less than 25 wineries produce wine from Mount Veeder fruit.

Winemaking began early in this appellation. In 1864, Captain Stelham Wing presented the first Mount Veeder wine to the Napa County Fair; it came from today’s Wing Canyon Vineyard. Prohibition, of course, halted winemaking and viticulture wasn’t revitalized until the founding of Mayacamas Vineyards in 1951 and Bernstein Vineyards in 1964.

The Bernstein Vineyards was actually home to the first Petit Verdot in California, planted in 1975. Today most of the Petit Verdot in Napa Valley originates from this vineyard.

Rocky volcanic clay and ancient seabed matter dominate Mount Veeder soils—perfect for Bordeaux varieties. Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Malbec, Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot enjoy spectacular success. These varieties produce wines rich in brambly blackberry and black cherry fruit with herbal and floral aromatics. Structures are moderate to assertive and wines have great staying power.

Chardonnay from Mount Veeder is lush, full and balanced mineral and fresh citrus flavors.

YNG431706_2018 Item# 780508

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