Wine Tasting: Alexander Valley Cabernet Sauvignon 2020

This wine tasting features Alexander Valley Vineyards 2020 Cabernet Sauvignon. This wine is from Sonoma County, California.  My friend's parents provided the bottle, and it is sold out on the Alexander Vineyard Valley website so I cannot find an accurate price currently, but it is definitely a $20 bottle or above.

Alexander Valley Vineyard describes its 2020 cabernet sauvignon as a product as a "near-perfect growing conditions."  There was steady warm days with cool evenings. More specifically, the winemaker says, "this is an elegant wine with earthy aromas of cassis, plum, cherry, vanilla, oak and slight chocolate. In the glass there are lush flavors of cherry, cassis, blackberry and chocolate."

The wine was given the gold medal in the Best Show of Red at the Monterey Wine Festival.  It was also awarded gold at the Hilton Head Island International Wine Competition.

Wine Folly, page 89, characterizes cabernet sauvignon from Napa Valley, CA, with black currant, pencil lead, tobacco, blackberry and mint. Sonoma County is about 50 miles by car from Napa Valley, but in this bottle from Sonoma County, I also tasted these mint and tobacco characteristics.

This red smelled of leather, red currant, sour red cherry, tobacco, and a hint of mint.  It had an almost irony taste with high tannins and medium acidity.  This wine tasted like red currants, and sour red fruit. It was full bodied with a hint of vanilla at the finish.

This is my favorite cabernet sauvignon that I have tried so far. The wine is not sweet at all, and offers so much depth. Each sip had me adding different flavor descriptors in my notes. I would highly recommend this wine to any friends, and would choose it to bring to a dinner if I was looking to impress with my wine selection.