Review: 2021 Louis M. Martini Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley
Louis M. Martini‘s cabernets have graced these pages regularly for years, and this Napa Valley-designated bottling makes a return appearance here once again with its 2021 vintage. This one is a blend of 91% cabernet sauvignon, 4% petit verdot, 3% merlot, 1% cabernet franc, and 1% malbec.
It’s safe to say that at this point, Martini has things figured out nicely. This wine maintains its high level of quality from one vintage to the next, presumably immune from the ravages of California’s fickle weather, and ready to drink the day you buy it.
Intensely purple in color, the wine has the density one expects from a Napa cab, thick with notes of currants and plums, layered with tobacco, leather, and dark chocolate notes — very light on the tannins. A hint of violets on the nose perk up some nuance, while the finish of the wine lingers on black licorice candy. Again, we’ve touched on most of these tasting notes in the past, going back all the way to the 2006 vintage, and somehow this wine seems hellbent on consistency. It’s a little like The Picture of Dorian Gray, only you can drink it.
A- / $55 / louismartini.com
2021 Louis M. Martini Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley
$55
