The 2016 Cabernet Sauvignon Beckstoffer Dr. Crane Vineyard Elysian is the special selection cuvée from this remarkable site in St. Helena. Brought up in new Darnajou and Taransaud barrels, it offers a slightly sweeter...
The 2016 Cabernet Sauvignon Beckstoffer Dr. Crane Vineyard Elysian is the special selection cuvée from this remarkable site in St. Helena. Brought up in new Darnajou and Taransaud barrels, it offers a slightly sweeter style in its crème de cassis and black raspberry fruits, vanilla bean, sweet spice, sandalwood, and dried flower aromas and flavors. It's a rich, powerful, seamless 2016 that has a supple texture, polished tannins, no hard edges, and the balance to evolve gracefully for two decades or more. As with the two cuvées from the Georges III Vineyard, the special selection is more open and complex, with a slightly sweeter profile. While I'm not convinced the special cuvées in 2016 are better wines, they're certainly different, and if presented with a choice between the two, the correct answer is "yes." There were 225 cases produced.