Dalla Valle Vineyards : Maya 2020

Features a cassis and black cherry fruit core flanked by a prominent tobacco note, with a loamy edge driving through as well. The slightly taut finish is underscored by alder and warm paving stone accents. Shows its Cabernet Franc side more than the Cabernet Sauvignon component. Cabernet Sauvignon and Cabernet Franc. Best from 2024 through 2035. 700 cases made.

Fragrant and highly scented on the nose, inviting and cool. The classic blend of 60% Cabernet Sauvignon and 40% Cabernet Franc is smooth and supple on the palate—crisp and crunchy yet silky, with a slightly chewy, bouncy feel. A lovely combination of power and focus, with drive and sculpt, nuance and detail. Excellent presentation that really fills the palate with juice, energy and brightness. Lovely length and overall structure—well-crafted, full but not overpowering, rich without excessive alcohol—a wonderful showing and totally delicious. Winemakers Naoko Dalla Valle and Andy Erickson.

Subtle yet transparent blackberry, black licorice and cassis bush. Some sage and lavender as well. Graphite, too. Full-bodied, yet tight and poised on the palate, with tight and refined tannins that are compact in the mouth. They are layered and run vertically down the wine. Turns nicely austere at the end. Very well done for the vintage. Give this three to four years to open up.

60% Cabernet Sauvignon, 40% Cabernet Franc. Deep in colour with a sweet, very pure, cassis-driven nose. The palate is monolithic, a surge of sweet black fruit met by rich, succulent tannin. Full-bodied yet balanced, this is of a style but impressively made. Very intense, with a long, polished finish. (TP)

The 2020 Maya is packed with black cherry, chocolate, spice, leather, scorched earth and incense. There's good depth to the fruit, but the tannins are searing in their intensity. There's a lot to like in the 2020, especially if it settles down. The tannins are pretty imposing today, though.

Perhaps there's a subtle added touch of leafy complexity to the 2020 Maya that the Cabernet Sauvignon doesn't show, but otherwise, this 60-40 blend of Cabernet Sauvignon and Cabernet Franc is reasonably similar, with black cherries, dark loamy notes, hints of cassis, cedar and vanilla. It's medium to full-bodied, richly textured and tannic but with a slightly open-knit feel and a ripe, softly wooly finish.