Wine Advocate
byJeb Dunnuckthe8/31/2015
The top wine of the estate and a blend that was the reason Stephan left Pomerol, the 2013 Estate Cuvee checks in as 43% Syrah, 42% Cabernet Sauvignon and 15% Petit Verdot that comes all from his estate vineyard. It's locked and loaded with black and blue fruit, crushed rock, licorice and ground herbs, and I wrote that it seemed like it was filtered through a rocky riverbed in my notes. Serious, structured and tight, yet fabulously concentrated and pure, it needs 3-4 years of cellaring and will keep for two decades. 97+
While the 2013s are small step back from Stephan’s insanely good 2012s, they’re still near the top of the hierarchy in Paso Robles. I tasted the 2014s from barrel and they might just rival the 2012s.