2022 Smith-Madrone Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon – An Excellent Wine and a Great Value
Photo ©Michael Kelly
Background
Opened this bottle last evening to enjoy a special meal. What transpired was a wine that exceeded my already high expectations. 2022 Smith-Madrone Cabernet Sauvignon was fragrant, fruit forward and soft going on to the palate, yet once there, burst forth with intense dark fruit flavors and brute strength with perfectly enjoyable tannins – a joyous surprise.
The Wine – “Wine is bottled poetry” – Robert Louis Stevenson
Photo ©Michael Kelly
On the eyes a deep penetrating purple and crimson coloring. In the glass, medium heavy viscosity. Then on the nose fresh red cherries burst in the olfactory senses with a violet scent. Once on the palate, luscious and impactful red and black berries filled the mouth with a bold and brawny yet caressing flavor with a secondary note of blueberries and light vanilla pipe tobacco. At the finish, strong bold tannins showed the pedigree of this vineyard with their angularness and robustness. The minerality was also noted. This is why I believe this youthful wine will appreciate and improve with aging over the next 12-15 years. The complexity of this wine is astonishing with flavor and character.
The wine consists of 81.5% Cabernet Sauvignon and 18.5% of their award-winning Cabernet Franc. The wine is grown on their hillside estate being non-tilled and sustainably farmed. The wine was aged for 18 months in 50% new French oak. The wine came in at 14.2% alcohol with only 1518 cases being produced and priced at $70/bottle, a remarkable bargain for this quality.
This wine just made my annual list Best Wines Tasted for 2026. Only 2-3% of the 1800 wines tasted during the year make the list which comes out in December each year. My suggestion is to garner 4 or more bottles and have one now and every 2-3 years open another, if you can wait that long!
While I have my own internal rating system, judging the wine on its merits only and this being rated with my second highest score, the best being “perfect”, it is by far one of the best value wines in Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon wines at any price point.
The Food and Wine Pairing – “Food without wine is a corpse; wine without food is a ghost. United and well matched, they are as body and soul: living partners” – Andre Simon
Photo ©Michael Kelly
Paired this evening with a prime filet mignon from Nebraska that we discovered at a local meat market called Chuck’s Fine Meats. The steak was seasoned with Applewood salt, mesquite, roasted garlic powder and Chuck’s Fine Meat Steak Seasoning. It was seared at 1500 degrees and served medium rare. Accompanied by a baked Russet potato and sauteed broccoli. A delicious meal and the wine was spot on with its fruit and tannins.
Here is where the Smith-Madrone shined with its fruit forwardness making it a wonderful flavor to complement the BBQ steak with strength and boldness enough with tannins to “cut through” the meat, making it a delightful meal.
This wine made my annual Best Wines Tasted for 2026.
The Winery
Photo ©Michael Kelly
This wine is their second Cabernet Sauvignon vintage since the Glass Fire in 2020 during which they produced no Cabernet Sauvignon. A story truly reminiscent of The Phoenix!
Photo ©Michael Kelly
In the picture you can see the Glass Fire burning right up against their property line.
The views from atop Spring Mountain are breathtaking overlooking Napa Valley.
Photo from vineyards looking east with Napa Valley below and Howell Mtn across the valley. Photo ©Michael Kelly
Smith-Madrone Vineyards is located on 200 acres on top of Spring Mountain west of St. Helena with 38 acres planted in vineyards. The vineyard elevation ranges from 1,300 to 2,000 feet.
Photo ©Michael Kelly
The founder, managing partner and enologist is Stuart Smith (center), Charles Smith (left) is the winemaker, and the associate winemaker is François Bugué (right). Truly a family affair! All the wines are estate and dry-farmed on top of the mountain. Currently their production is approximately 6,000 cases a year. They produce Chardonnay, Riesling, Cabernet Sauvignon and their iconic Cooks Flat (blend of Cabernet Sauvignon and Cabernet Franc).
Photo ©Michael Kelly
For detailed information on the winery and unique trellis system, you can read the story from a previous visit at:
https://californiawinesandwineries.com/2024/08/14/smith-madrone-vineyards-paradise-found/
Sláinte,
Michael Kelly