Blend: 82% Cabernet Sauvignon, 12% Cabernet Franc, 6% Petit Verdot
97 Points Wine Enthusiast
Extremely dark in the glass, it starts with heavily spiced aromas of vanilla, mocha and walnut cream that balance the rich black cherry and roasted berry fruits. The palate’s tannins are immensely grippy yet expertly polished, framing flavors of loam, black olive and graphite.
96+ Points Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
The 2021 Soul Of A Lion is a blend of 80% Cabernet Sauvignon, 13% Cabernet Franc and 7% Petit Verdot. It was matured for 22 months in 100% new French oak, bottled in August of 2023 and tasted in late September. It takes some time to unfold scents of blackcurrants, blueberries, green pepper, dried lavender and sage and continues to open as it spends time in the glass. The palate is stunning! It has ripe, detailed fruit, pixelated tannins and seamless acidity and finishes with fantastic length and perfume. It's an especially elegant example of this cuvée and should be very long lived.
96 Points Tasting Panel
Made with fruit that hails from an elevation of 2.200 feet on DAOU Mountain, this proud, sumptuous wine makes a grand entrance on a boysenberry-blue carpet surrounded by dark chocolate and lavender. Sturdy tannins soften as it opens up, mellowing out on the suede-lined finish.
95 Points Decanter
This full, voluptuous and complex wine will only improve with age. The fruit is dominant now, but tertiary notes are emerging. Aromas of dark berries and blackcurrants are confirmed on the palate, plus mocha and black liquorice notes, medium tannins will continue to integrate with age. A complex, lengthy finish. A long life ahead, yet it will be ready to drink upon release.
95 Points Vinous
Dark as night, the 2021 Soul of a Lion takes its time opening in the glass as incense and sage give way to pencil lead, dried roses and black currants. This weighs on the palate with textures of pure velvet, seeming to envelop all that it touches in ripe red fruits as a pleasantly bitter balsamic tinge settles in, adding lovely contrast. It leaves a web of finely knit tannins that clench the senses with youthful poise, and yet somehow, the mouth continues to water. Hints of licorice and dark chocolate fade slowly.
95 Points James Suckling
Perfumed and fruit-driven with elegant notes of blackberries, coffee beans and dried herbs. The palate is full-bodied with silky tannins and bright acidity, giving complex notes of blackcurrants, graphite, salt brine and cedar. Wonderfully balanced. Made from a blend of 82% cabernet sauvignon, 12% cabernet franc and 6% petit verdot.
Winemaker Notes
The 2021 vintage displays remarkable intensity in the glass with dark, inky ruby-purple hues. Abundant fruit aromas of black cherry, blackberry, blueberry jam and black currant are interwoven with accents of baking spices, sage and graphite. A voluminous entry introduces sumptuous layers of chocolate-covered blueberry, tobacco, mocha, vanilla and toasted oak. The mouthfeel is concentrated and elegant, with round, vibrant tannins that carry into a commanding finish. A wine of immense staying power that will evolve favorably for many years to come.
