This is the first time I had this wine.  I picked it up at the Costco in Rancho Bernardo for $27.99 (full retail is $40).  The front of the bottle has a small slver label that simply says "Archipel".  They only make one wine.  The wine is a blend of 62% Cabernet Sauvignon, 30% Merlot, and 8% Cabernet Franc.  94% of the grapes come from Sonoma Vineyards, and 6% from Napa County.  In small print, the back label says the wine was "grown, produced, and bottled by Verite' ".  For those unfamiliar with Verite', they are one of the ultra-hip California boutique cult wines selling for over 100 dollars per bottle.  I don't know if this is a new project from Verite from new vineyard sources, or if it just represents a "2nd label" that utilizes grapes that did not make the cut for their premium wines.  In either case, this was really really good wine, and a great value for the price.

This deeply colored purple wine has plenty of blackberry notes along with tobacco leaf campfire smoke, and a hint of tar.  There is plenty of lucious fruit forward intensity on the palate, and a pleasing moderate length finish with soft well integrated tannin.  The wine is clearly a shining example of a hedonistic California cab, but had enough old world nuance to make it a rather compelling wine, particularly at the price offered at Costco.  The winery is currently in release of their 2002 vintage, so I don't know how much longer the 2001 will be on the shelves.  My advice is run, don't walk, down to Costco and pick up a few bottles before they are gone.

4 stars

 

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