Wine Advisor
Rivers Marie, Panek Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon 2018
View analysis
Description
Tasting notes
Reviewed by: Lisa Perrotti-Brown
Made from 100% Cabernet Sauvignon, the 2018 Cabernet Sauvignon Panek Vineyard is deep garnet-purple in color, offering expressive notes of fresh, ripe red and black currants, juicy plums and Black Forest cake with hints of tilled soil, underbrush, black olives and tar plus a waft of bay leaves. The palate is medium to full-bodied and built like a brick house, featuring very firm, finely grained tannins and bold freshness, finishing with long-lingering earthy/savory nuances. 550 cases were made.
Reviewed by: Antonio Galloni
The 2018 Cabernet Sauvignon Panek Vineyard dazzles from start to finish. Silky, plush tannins wrap around a core of red/purplish fruit as this opulent, full-throttle Cabernet opens in the glass. The Panek is a very typical Cabernet for this northern sector of St. Helena where the wines are plush and racy. All the elements come together so effortlessly. Bright acids and sweet floral overtones lift the finish. Best of all, the 2018 will be ready to deliver maximum pleasure pretty much upon release. This is the first year in which Rivers-Marie had access to all the fruit. I suspect being able to choose the best blocks explains much of the elevated quality here. In a word: stunning.
About the Producer
Since 2002 Rivers-Marie has quietly been producing limited production premium wines including Pinot Noir; their first vintage was from the Summa Vineyard on the dead-end Taylor Lane near the town of Occidental in neighboring Sonoma County. This vineyard produced the first 100 point Pinot Noir from California in 1991 when it was a Williams Selyem vineyard designate. Today the vineyard is owned by Rivers-Marie. Later they added Chardonnay and Cabernet Sauvignon to their portfolio. The winery is owned and operated by husband and wife, winemaker Thomas Brown and Genevieve Welsh. The name comes from combining both of their middle names, Rivers from Thomas and Marie from Genevieve. For years, the wines were primarily sold through their allocation list with very limited domestic distribution.
