Screaming Eagle 2018 earned 100 points from The Wine Advocate. It is a fragrant, finely built vintage of the Oakville flagship.
About This Wine
Harvest at the estate stretched over six weeks in 2018, with each block brought in only when it was judged ready. Nick Gislason's flagship is drawn mainly from Cabernet grown on the western side of the property. The Wine Advocate described black cherries, ripe blackberries and red and black currants with liquorice, candied violets, cedar and sea spray. Antonio Galloni pointed to crème de cassis, lavender and rose petal, and James Suckling gave 99, noting fine, velvety tannins and a long finish.
Tasting Profile
- Nose: Blackberry, black cherry and currants with violets, rose petal, lavender and cedar.
- Palate: Medium to full-bodied and elegant, with ripe fruit, fine velvety tannins and plenty of underlying structure.
- Finish: Very long, with liquorice, clove and a faint salty lift.
Serving & Food
Serve at 16 to 18°C after an hour or so in a decanter, using a large Bordeaux glass. Lovely now for its perfume, and it will keep for two decades or more. Match with roast pigeon, beef tenderloin with morels or a Peking duck course.
How to Enjoy
A top recent vintage of Screaming Eagle for a landmark dinner or cellar.
Product Details
Producer: Screaming Eagle
Country: USA
Region: Oakville, Napa Valley, California
Vintage: 2018
Grape Variety: Cabernet Sauvignon-led red
Winemaker: Nick Gislason
Volume: 750mL
About the Winery
The Oakville property is small enough to walk in an afternoon, but its soils and exposures vary a good deal. Cabernet Sauvignon for the flagship wine comes mostly from the western side of the estate, while a plot of old-vine Merlot on the eastern side grows on especially well-drained soils and goes chiefly into The Flight.
Gislason has said that finding great Merlot in California is like searching for a diamond in a dark cave with only a laser pointer, which is why that eastern plot matters so much. The Cabernet selection for The Flight comes from a fresher end of the property, leaving the firmer, deeper lots for Screaming Eagle itself.