How The Daou Brothers Crafted Patrimony, A $300 Luxury Wine From Paso Robles - Forbes Magazine
99pts Wine Advocate
The 2019 Caves des Lions is a blend of free-run Cabernet Sauvignon (52%) and Cabernet Franc (48%) matured for 22 months in 100% new French oak and bottled in December of 2021. Opaque ruby in color, it has layered aromas of blackcurrant, lilac, graphite, fried savory herbs and game meats. The full-bodied palate is powerful yet balanced, its restrained, mineral-laced fruit complemented by mouthwatering acidity, and it boasts a long, graceful finish. Harmonious and latent, it will demand plenty of patience as it unwinds in bottle—the Patrimony wines tend to age at a glacial pace.
98pts Jeb Dunnuck
More cassis, crushed stone, graphite, and chocolate emerge from the 2019 Caves Des Lions, and it's beautifully textured, with full-bodied richness, building yet ripe, polished tannins, a gorgeous mid-palate, and one heck of a great finish. For all its richness and depth, it stays lively, fresh, and weightless, and it’s a beautiful wine.
Range: 96-98
97pts James Suckling
Deep and fragrant nose with a lift of currant leaf freshness to the cassis, nori, Spanish chocolate, roasted jalapeño pepper, sumptuous blackberries and some cigar box. Full-bodied and compact on the palate with firm but ultra-fine tannins here that are powerful but not grippy. Long and juicy. 52% cabernet sauvignon and 48% cabernet franc.
97pts Decanter
Pronounced aromatic intensity on a nose of dark fruits including blackberries, plus sweet wood, cigar box and toast. An almost impossible delicacy to this wine which was birthed from two powerful grapes and showcases the expert handling in the winery. Notes of coffee bean and dark chocolate round out the finish. Exceptionally well-rounded and showing all the structural elements for quality that one would expect from a wine at this level.
