1997 Cain Five Napa Valley Bordeaux Blend

1997 Cain Five Napa Valley Bordeaux Blend SKU #992073

$119.99

ST 92	RP 91	WE 91
WS 91

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Professional Reviews

Stephen Tanzer's International Wine Cellar
92
Deep red-ruby color. Slightly reduced aromas of smoky currant, coffee liqueur, minerals and smoked meat. Big, sweet and deep, with lovely acidity giving the fruit a penetrating quality. Has the strong extract to buffer its firm structure. Good ripe black fruit flavors. Finishes with very fine, mounting tannins and subtle persistence. Complex and claret-like. (ST)

(06/2000)
Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
91
The 1997 Cain Five, one of the finest wines Cain has yet produced, is a superb blend of 87% Cabernet Sauvignon, 11% Cabernet Franc, 1% Petit Verdot, and 1% Malbec. This is a classy, rich, concentrated effort revealing copious quantities of black fruits intermixed with licorice, coffee, and vanillin. This wine is medium to full-bodied, with a velvety texture. This rich, elegant, intense, well-balanced, impressive red should drink well for 15+ years. (RP)

(06/2002)
Wine Enthusiast
91
This predominantly Cabernet Sauvignon blend could actually be Cain Four this year, as there’s no Malbec in the blend. Large and taut, it displays tightly wrapped prune, toast, coffee and currant aromas. Possesses a handsome mouthfeel, with full tannins, tarry pine bark and a cocoa note on the palate and back end.

(11/2000)
Wine Spectator
91
Rich and earthy, with a leathery, minerally streak running through a plush core of black cherry, currant, sage. (JL)

(03/2001)
Jancis Robinson

Drenched in a lovely deep colour, this Bordeaux blend (truly Napa Valley in style) is multi-layered with rich and intense fruit. Concentrated, lush but elegant. 18/20 points.

(03/2002)

K&L Notes

This is the first year that Cain did not use any Merlot in the final blend. Cain believes the Merlot in 1997 was not seen as an asset to the blend and instead of forcing even 1% in there, it was left out entirely. The final blend came out to be 87% Cabernet Sauvignon, 11% Cabernet Franc, 1% Petite Verdot and 1% Malbec. The wine is typical of a 1997 Cabernet blend, sweet and ripe with excellent concentration and density. Along with the sweet fruit comes some balance and finesse. The wine also shows a firm structure and a good deal of power. It should have no problem developing in a cellar over the next ten years. Definitely one of the best 1997s we have tasted here at K&L. Production for the Cain Five is 6,770 cases. (Trey Beffa, K&L Domestic Buyer)