2005 Levy and McClellan Cabernet Sauvignon

Levy and McClellan’s 2005 Cabernet Sauvignon, which spent 26 months in new oak (mostly Taransaud), is developing at an incredibly slow rate. Its opaque ruby/purple color is accompanied by beautiful aromas of roasted coffee, melted chocolate, creme de cassis, burning embers, camphor, and a hint of cedar. On the palate, the wine combines considerable substance, power, and extract with a sense of harmony as well as elegance. Black currant, blackberry, and gamy, meaty notes are also present in this full-bodied effort with an incredibly long finish. The wine is just beginning to shed some tannin and become accessible. It will benefit from another 4-5 years of bottle age, and will easily last for three decades or more. Under their personal label, the brilliant husband and wife team of Martha McClellan and Bob Levy turn out 400 cases of a blend of 90% Cabernet Sauvignon and the rest Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot, all from a mountainside vineyard planted in volcanic soils at a 500-600 foot elevation. The vineyard spacing is unusually close with 2,900 vines per acre (compared with around 600 vines per acre at many other Napa Cabernet vineyards). Bob Levy has been the winemaker at Harlan Estate since its inception, and, along with owner Bill Harlan, is in the process of making Bond as prodigious as Harlan Estate. Martha McClellan is the winemaker for two Napa Valley superstar cult wineries, Blankiet and Sloan. As I have written in the past, these efforts are produced by two quiet, somewhat reclusive individuals with extraordinary resumes, limitless talent, and a perfectionist, nearly obsessive attitude toward making world-class wines.