Reviews
-Wine Enthusiast -
Technical Details
- 100% Cabernet Sauvignon
- Blaine Brazil
- US
- California
- North Coast
- Sonoma County
- Asti Ridge Vineyard
- French oak, 40% new
- aged for 22 months in French oak, 40% new
- 14.3%
- 150 cases
Bedarra Cabernet Sauvignon Estate Grown Alexander Valley 2021
65% OFF RETAIL!
I guess pigs have begun flying, because there’s no way an estate-grown Alexander Valley Cabernet Sauvignon with 93 POINTS could possibly be under $35. Madness! For a Cab, this is fabulously fresh and poised – bringing both inky, savory complexity along with all the lively, popping acidity you could want. And for our price, it’s a no-brainer to bring home a solid 6-pack, at minimum.
Husband-wife duo Jeff and Brigid Harris opened up Bedarra in 2005, after falling in love with fine wine while living in the Bay Area. They had gotten married in Alexander Valley in 2003, and then took their honeymoon to a remote tropical escape off the Great Barrier Reef in Australia called Bedarra Island. The island’s tranquil beauty and respite calmness inspired the name of their future winery endeavor, with hopes of capturing the same sense of peace and adventure.
They kicked off their winery-launching juncture with the purchase of a small vineyard on the southern edge of the Dry Creek Valley, eventually moving north to Alexander Valley in 2012, purchasing an 8-acre hillside vineyard on Chalk Hill Road. They replanted the entire vineyard in 2014, dedicating about 90% of the land to Cabernet Sauvignon (reserving the rest for Malbec and Merlot).
The 2021 is 100% Cabernet Sauvignon made in small quantities (only 150 cases in total) from their vineyards in the southern stretches of Alexander Valley known for cool nights and toasty days. It’s both juicy and savory, with cherry, blackberry, and plum jam in the foreground, wrapped in complex elements of graphite, caramel latte, dried violets, crushed rocks, and a bit of blood orange zest and tingly spearmint on the considerably lengthy finish. Mouth-hugging tannins and a zippy, well-folded-in acidity make this an utter joy, and it’s blessedly easing into the start of its prime drinking window, sure to span the next decade or more.
Seriously folks, under $35 is criminally insane… even more nuts is letting it pass you by. Get at least four for free shipping and take advantage of the madness!
FOOD PAIRINGS: Have you had quesabirria tacos? The juicy meat, the crunchy cheese crust, the smoky sauce… oohh, just slamming with a ferociously good, plush, acid-driven Cab such as this.