Wine reviews

October 2013

A big jump forward is the 2011 Cabernet Sauvignon Beckstoffer Hopper Missouri Vineyard, a new Beckstoffer site in the southern end of Napa Valley, near Oak Knoll. This finesse-styled Cabernet displays black currant, dusty, loamy soil, tobacco leaf and baking spice notes in its medium-bodied, ripe, elegant, suave personality. Enjoy it over the next decade. Alpha Omega, which has been in existence for nearly a decade, is located in a handsome building on Highway 29. The wines are made by Jean Hoefliger teamed with the famous globe-trotting Bordeaux oenologist, Michel Rolland. I have noticed incremental improvement in these cuvees, and the 2011s generally performed well. - RP