94 pts – Wine Advocate
The prodigious 2001 Cariad is a blend of 55% Cabernet Sauvignon, 31% Merlot and the rest Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot, primarily from two of David Abreu’s vineyard holdings in Napa Valley (Madrona Ranch and Thorevilos). Complex notes of burning embers,
92 pts – Wine Spectator
94 pts – Vinous
Good full deep ruby. Liqueur-like aromas of black raspberry, bitter chocolate and vanillin oak; verging on exotic. Hugely rich and sweet wine of compelling creamy opulence. Really opens out in the middle palate and builds toward the back. Sound acids and underlying mineral character give shape to the wine’s extraordinary fruit. Finishes with major sweet tannins and palate-staining persistence. ST
