I'm still very intrigued by the differences between California and Washington Cabernet Sauvignon. For my part, I associate California with a tendency towards more oak, and Washington with a similar tendency to complex fruit. Consequently, this 2005 bottle of Hannah Nicole Cabernet Sauvignon practically leapt off the shelf and into my basket while looking for something to accompany home-made chile rellenos. The Hannah Nicole winery is located in Contra Costa, California. It's a family winery, but one that recently finished building a huge complex with a warehouse, and tasting room and shop, on beautiful grounds. The proprietors initially planned to grow apples; Granny Smith apples to be precise, but when apple prices dropped, they planted grapes. And then, caught by the joy of wine-making, in 2002 they bought more land, and planted more grapes. Last summer they completed the construction of a state of the art 18,000 square foot winery, tasting room and event center surrounded by landscaped grounds.

The Hannah Nicole 2005 Cabernet Sauvignon is a lovely deep red in the glass. The aroma is identifiably Cabernet Sauvignon, with currant and a hint of black cherry most noticeable, with a faint hint of something sharper and more earthy. It's a more delicate Cabernet Sauvignon than I'd expect from California, more fruit-forward, and less oaky. There's a just a hint of coffee or bitter chocolate in the finish.

The Website describes the wine as a blend of 90% Cabernet Sauvignon & 10% Cabernet Franc, with grapes sources from the Quail Trail Vineyard, and from Suisun Valley, CA, respectively. After primary and malilactic fermentation the wine was moved to stainless steel tanks and then transferred to French, & American Oak barrels for aging for two years; 40% of the barrels were New Oak, and bottled in May of 2008. The ABV is 13.6%. This is not a robust Cabernet Sauvignon, but it stood up well to chile rellenos, and I'm intrigued enough to contemplate a bottle-to-bottle challenge with the California Meridian Cabernet Sauvignon. I note that the Hannah Nicole Website lists the 2005 Cabernet Sauvignon for $27.00 a bottle, but that we purchased it locally at the BGO for $4.99.