Tried this last night based on current WS issue on Washington wines and its 90 point score. And the fact that WS says it retails for USD$28, yet was available here for CAD$27. Never saw that before, probably never will again. Double and triple checked the label but it seems clearly to be the same wine.

Anyways, we liked it a lot: fruity, full-bodied, nothing harsh or unpleasant about it at all, but to my mind, not really a 90 point wine. Maybe 87 points. And surprisingly, both my missus and I liked the first taste, before we tasted it with food (lasagna in a rich red tomato sauce), better than we liked it with food. never had that happen before either.

Strange but true.

bman,

If you were drinking a Cab with lasagna in a rich tomato sause, it is little wonder the wine was better on its own. Most Cab's and Merlot's are killed by the acid in a tomato-based sauces. That's why Sangiovese-based wines pair so well with these sauces, as Sangiovese is a higher acid varietal. There will always be exceptions to this rule, but generally speaking, you rarely make expensive mistakes.

Tim

Several back labels of cabs have recommended pasta as a food match, but we do usually have something else with tomato sauces. The sauce wasn't THAT rich. In any case, I don't think this wine will get another chance because there are others we like better for less.