Hess - Cabernet Sauvignon

Price: $15.99
Region: California
Year: 2006

Still have a bit of a backlog of reviews to get to for a couple of different reasons, and was hoping to get at least two done today, but don't think that is going to happen. I decided to review this wine, just because it was one of the ones I enjoyed over this past holiday weekend (Easter), and it is fresh in my mind. In picking this wine out, I took a bit of a different approach. Before O left work on Friday, I had a quick conversation with one of my friends. We both get the same wine of the day calendar, hers being online, and mine being one of those little square desk calendars. I usually save a wine if it looks like one I want to try, and she usually saves a link for the same reason. So, we went through our saved wine of the day selections, and this is what we came up with. It definitely made the trip to the wine store that much easier. While sometimes I enjoy browsing the local wine store, the way home on a Friday evening isn't usually one of those times. For this blog, this is a couple of dollars more than I usually spend on a weekly wine, but I'm sure you can find it somewhere for under $15.

When I first poured a glass, I was a bit intrigued by the color. It wasn't a big bold looking red, but did have really nice clarity, and an almost ruby hue to it. So, if I thought that the appearance wasn't typical Cabernet, I certainly can't say that about the smell. I gave my glass a few swirls, and tried my new sniffing routine again, and very much enjoyed a full-bodied red wine smell. I would say it have a hint of blackberry, which is what usually comes to my mind for me when I smell a typical Cab. At this point, I was pretty impressed, but the taste is always most important to me. With my first sip, I immediately noticed how smooth this wine was, and also the great tannins. This wine had a great upfront taste, that continued all the way to the back of the throat. Really great length. That smell of blackberries was again evident int he taste. Overall, a really good wine, and held up well against wines that I've paid twice as much for. Go give it a try for sure.

Rating: 4.25 (A Cab for the Top 5)