The 2006 Cabernet Sauvignon Revilo Vineyard shows restraint and minerality along with herbaceous black currant fruit and loamy soil notes. It is a structured, tannic, somewhat monolithic offering that does not reveal the charm or potential of the other Cabernet Sauvignons. Nevertheless, there is a lot going on here, and another 3-4 years of bottle age is necessary to see what will develop.
Carter Cellars is a relatively new operation (it began in the late 1990s) run by Mark Carter and Nils Venge. The wines are made at Venge’s Saddleback Cellars in Oakville with some assistance from Fred Schrader. They have some interesting vineyard sources, including the Beckstoffer To-Kalon Vineyard in Oakville, the Truchard Vineyard in Carneros, the Revilo Vineyard in St. Helena, and the Coliseum Block in Soda Canyon.
Tel. (707) 445-0311; Fax (707) 444-8067