A blend of 65.65% Cabernet Sauvignon, 19.65% Merlot, 9.8% Cabernet Franc, and 4.9% Petit Verdot. The 2004 La Joie is a dark to opaque ruby color. It has a powerful and youthful nose, very Bordeaux-like with distinct dark currant, blackberry, and cassis aromas, complemented by notes of anise, violets, graphite, and gravel. On the palate, it possesses rich, dense flavors of blackberry and dark plum with hints of new leather, and an interesting combination of earth and minerals. Its finish is long a...

Bright ruby-red. Black and blue fruits complicated by licorice, minerals and fresh herbs on the nose. Rich, broad, lush and full, even if it conveys less easy sweetness and personality today than the Muse . Best today on the sensational back half, which features a major coating of suave tannins and an extremely long, aromatic finish that reverberates with subtle floral tones. Interestingly, this cabernet-based wine has a higher pH than the merlot-based Muse: 3.78 vs. 3.64.

65% Cabernet Sauvignon; 20% Merlot; 10% Cabernet Franc; 5% Petite Verdot. This dense, obviously extracted effort is very much a wine of high ambition, and it gets good marks for its concentration and depth. It does not, however, show much in the way of refinement or finesse at this point, and its inherent toughness and puckery back-end tannins serve as warnings that six to ten years of age may be needed before it rounds into its best drinking form.

Community Tasting Notes (average 91.7 pts. and median of 93 pts. in 3 notes)

Rating: 93/100 - As reviewed in Wine Advocate # 168 on Dec-06

Rating for United States-California: 91 (slightly better than average year)<br/><br/>Drinkability: drink now<br/>