14 Hands Cabernet Sauvignon

I’m not usually one to argue in favor of ideology in the wine world. When you march into the wine area behind a banner proclaiming your allegiance to drinking only “old world” wines or “new world” wines or natural wines or double-oaked wines or whatever. Paying obeisance to any wine category other than “tastes good” just gets in the way of having a good time.

This brings us to the one occasion that ideology is a good thing, and that’s with a Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon that emerged victorious from the Biagio tasting arena earlier this week: the 2016 Ideology Cabernet Sauvignon. (cue “We Are The Champions”)

The vineyards lie in the Oak Knoll district just north of the city of Napa and at the foot of the Mayacamas Mountains. They’ve got four Cabernet Sauvignon blocks on the site and they’re planted to three different clones so as to increase the complexity of the wine. This is a big, powerful Cabernet, with an overriding sensation of berries, earth and cocoa. It’s nicely balanced, with enough oak and tannin to support the rich fruit, and it has a relatively soft finish. This style is very much the new normal for Napa Cabernets, and this is one ideology that may be worth waving the flag for.