The 2017 Cabernet Sauvignon Estate showed beautifully, with gorgeous notes of cassis, crushed violets, graphite, and lead pencil all emerging from the glass. Showing plenty of richness and depth, medium to full body, good acidity, and plenty of firm tannins, it's not a blockbuster, but it has the balance and class to evolve for 15 years or more. The blend is 75% Cabernet Sauvignon, 21% Merlot, 3% Cabernet Franc, and the rest Petit Verdot.

The limestone seabed on which this cabernet grows produces Monte Bello as well as this Estate bottling, a selection of the parcels that provide a more accessible wine early on. Those parcels rise up the mountainside in Cupertino, ranging from 1,300 to 2,700 feet above the Pacific Ocean. Crafted by Eric Baugher, the 2017 is an austere yet concentrated wine with mellow intensity, its organically farmed fruit offering fresh black currant and anise savor, its tannins capturing the mineral inflection and tension that limestone soils can give. Rather than effusive enthusiasm, it’s a wine of coastal harmony. Zen cabernet.