TASTING NOTES:
A blend of 60% Cabernet Sauvignon and 40% Cabernet Franc, this is a tremendous wine, offering grippy red-currant, tobacco and graphite components around a full-bodied core of weight and breadth. Powerful, with elegant leanings, it retains and celebrates much of the Cab Franc character in its unabashed embrace of dried herb, clove and violet.
- Wine Enthusiast, 98 pts.
A dense and layered red with red tile, currants and hints of black peppers. Full-bodied and juicy with beautiful density and length. Granular tannins.
- James Suckling, 95 pts.
A blend of 60/40 Cabernet Sauvignon and Cabernet Franc, the 2015 LMV Salon is a cuvee that’s moving towards being a Cabernet Franc-dominated release as the estate plants more Cabernet Franc. Cassis, spring flowers, chocolate and a rocky, river bottom-like earthiness all flow to a full-bodied, concentrated, tannic 2015 that has exceptional purity and a great finish. 94+
- Deb Junnuck, 94 pts.
Composed of 60% Cabernet Sauvignon and 40% Cabernet Franc, the deep garnet-purple colored 2015 Lmv Salon Proprietary Red has an earthy, meaty, gamy nose with a crème de cassis and preserved plums core backed up by Christmas cake and new leather with a medicinal waft. Medium to full-bodied and concentrated on the palate, with firm, chewy tannins and a good core of fruit, it's just a bit astringent and closed at this youthful stage.
- Robert Parker's Wine Advocate, 94 pts.
Muskier and less exuberant on the nose than the 2015 Solari; a bit lower-toned. Shows excellent punch if not quite the personality and early sex appeal of the Solari, with its plum and spice flavors underpinned by minerality. Not quite the early balance of the Solari, as the wine's serious spine of acids and tannins will require patience. Ultimately a bit drier on the back half.
- Vinous, 92 pts.