Caymus Vineyards (Napa Valley)

The first stop of our Napa Valley wine tour was Caymus Vineyards in Rutherford. I know Caymus makes great wines but I didn't really know much about them. The only time I have had Caymus wine was a few years back at a friend's wedding. I don't remember which vintage I had (there were a lot of wines flowing that night lol) but I just remember that it had a very unique taste and reminded me of roasted coffee beans. I remember liking it so I was looking forward to trying it again.


As we pulled up to the tasting room, it looked very rustic with vines covering the building. The tasting area wasn't very big inside but we were told that there were other tasting rooms in the building. We did the $15 tasting, which included a selection of wines from the Wagner Family of Wines (with different members of the family directing the different labels) and not just from Caymus. We started with the Mer Soleil 2010 Silver, Unoaked Chardonnay, which comes from Santa Lucia Highlands of Monterey County. I've never never had unoaked wines before and the Chardonnay was extremely light and crisp, vs. the more buttery texture that I've often found in other Chardonnays. The second wine we had was the Belle Glos 2009 Pinot Noir. Unfortunately I found that one to be not very memorable.


We quickly continued on to the next wine, the Caymus 2009 Cabernet Sauvignon. I was really excited because I thought this was the wine I had a few years ago and I couldn't wait to drink it again. After a quick sip, I was disappointed... Did I remember wrong or could a different vintage make such a big difference? Don't get wrong, the Cab was delicious but it tasted nothing like I remembered so I couldn't help but feel a bit disappointed. Just as I thought we were done, the staff pulled out another bottle from behind the counter and asked if we would like to try the 2009 Special Selection Cab. We happily obliged of course. And as I took a whiff of the aroma, I knew that this was the one I had a few years ago and sure enough, one sip brings out the rich, full-bodied flavor with just a hint of coffee (others call it mocha). Now that I've solved the mystery of what I had, I was satisfied... :)

Caymus Vineyards
8700 Conn Creek Rd
Rutherford, CA 94573
(707) 967-3010