Dominus Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon 2008 750mL

A vivid expression of its unique site, Dominus is a profound and powerful wine, exemplifying purity. With articulated fruit and polished tannins, the wine has elegance, complexity, great length and improves with age.

A challenging year for viticulturists yet extremely rewarding for winemakers, 2008 was conditioned by uncommonly low precipitation throughout the winter and spring.  Starting in mid-March through late April, cold mornings threatened the young shoots with frost while dramatic temperature uctuations during owering hampered pollination, resulting in few berries per cluster.  Reduced water reserves in the soil limited vigor, decreased berry size and generated record low yields. With six days over 100ºF, the summer was warm; a peak of 104ºF was recorded on August 28th. e end of September marked the start of a quick and high-quality harvest characterized by evenly ripened grapes.

Grape Varietals:

Cabernet Sauvignon 83%, Cabernet Franc 13%, Petit Verdot 4%

Tasting Notes:

Dominus 2008 is a wine of great purity and de nition, with distinct berry aromas and a supple yet precise palate.  Deep blackberry and dark plums complement ne mineral notes. is wine is intensely perfumed, velvety and ethereal.

99 Points - Robert Parker's Wine Advocate, December 2010. "Made in a more masculine style, the 2008 Dominus has all of that along with bigger body and more structure, fat, density and texture. Both are brilliant wines and they represent the finest back-to-back vintages for Dominus since 2001 and 2002 or 1990 and 1991. Both the 2007 and 2008 Dominus should drink well for 25-30 years."

98 Points - Decanter," Now 30 years old, this venture is a Californian classic. But the real success is how Christian Moueix, proprietor of Pétrus, so fine-tuned his approach with Cabernet while turning his back on Merlot. The 2008 is 83% Cabernet Sauvignon, 13% Cabernet Franc and 4% Petit Verdot. While oak may be Napa’s mainstay, Dominus sees just 40% new barrels, leaving its fate more to a relentless focus on sorting and the Napanook vineyard’s sublime soils. A sweet floral edge enlivens creamy blackberry, sandalwood and gravelly mineral, with well-robed tannins that only appear at the finish. For all the flesh, this has long-lived savory nuance."

98 Points - The Wine Independent, March 2023.

95 Points - James Suckling, "This is very pure fruit for Dominus. This will be interesting to see how it develops in the future. 2008 was a very small crop. Very perfumed and beautiful, with currants, flowers, and notes of mint. Full bodied, with round velvety tannins that lead up to a chocolate and ripe berry finish. This is showing great fruit, and a great finish. Structurally this is like a 2005 La Mission."