Product: Sterling Vineyards Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon 2002 Producer: Sterling Vineyards Approximate Retail Value: $25 Category: Wine Country of Origin: USA/California Reviewer: SexHerald Staff The F Words: Flavor – Fruity with nutmeg, cloves and a chocolate finish. Feel – Smooth and quite drinkable from the get-go. Finish – Soft and chalky tannin.

Rating:

When my wife first sipped this wine, she said, “Now that’s a full-bodied, wine, woo.” That’s a good first reaction to a California Cabernet Sauvignon, which in my opinion, is littered with many bad choices. Sterling Vineyards proves to be the exception to the rule.

I actually visited Sterling in the fall of 1999 with my wife and brother-in-law. The three of us took the ride up the mountainside gondola in Calistoga. The tasting room at Sterling is large and cozy. We drank, or shall I say “tasted,” more wine than we should have, and my wife signed us up for the monthly wine club.

This cabernet has a deep purple, red-ruby hue with a nose that presents an elegant black plum fruit with layers of rose petals, toffee, chocolate, vanilla and anise. On the palate, the wine is bright and well-balanced with a rich striptease on the palette. Flavors of ripe blackberry, plum and black cherry are followed by notes of nutmeg, cloves and a long dark chocolate finish. The tannin is soft and chalky.

The grapes for this vintage of the Sterling Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon come from their estate vineyards in Calistoga, Rutherford and Oakville, as well as from select Napa growers. Sonoma’s Alexander Valley and Mendocino County contributed a small portion of fruit to this blend as well.

Individual lots were fermented separately in temperature-controlled stainless steel with selected yeast strains. The fermentation is malolactic followed in oak upright tanks, after which the wines were aged for an average of 12 months in a combination of French and American oak barrels.

When pairing this wine, I suggest a nice dry-aged filet mignon, rack of lamb, roasted California squab, and as I did for this review, tikka masala from your favorite Indian takeout place. Soft and hard cheeses also complement this wine.

Sterling Vineyards wines are produced by Diageo Chateau & Estate Wines, which is part of Diageo, the world's leading premium drinks business. DC&E also produces and markets Beaulieu Vineyard, Sterling Vintner's Collection, Solaris and Blossom Hill, as well as the French wines of Barton & Guestier. DC&E is also a leading importer of classified Bordeaux in the U.S. and F.E. Trimbach wines from Alsace. A collection of Burgundy estate-bottled wines and several other fine European wines complement the collection. The company is listed on both the New York Stock Exchange (DEO) and the London Stock Exchange (DGE).