To learn about this winery out of Bel Air in Los Angeles, California, check out my review from Sunday for their 2015 White Wine.
Here is what Scott Rich, Moraga's winemaker, had to say about 2013: The 2013 growing season was the second year of serious drought at Moraga, with less that 4" of rain for the entire season. The positive side of this phenomenon was warm, dry weather during flowering and fruit set i June which set the stage for a reasonable crop load. Even though temperatures never reached triple digits (the high for the year, 96˚ F, occured in mid-August), overall, the year was slightly warmer than average. The grapes responded by producing a modicum more high-quality tannins than we often see. The first half of Spetember 204, when the first fruit had acheived perfect ripeness. We picked sporadically over the next two weeks as each section of the vineyard hit optimal tannin and flavor development. The last day of harvest was October 7, two to three weeks earlier than the norm.
During the winemaking process, each lot went through pre-fermentation maceration and fermentation seperately. Then they were sealed in their air-tight fermenters to go through more maceration. After being drained and further pressed, each lot was racked into 100% French oak for almost two years. Once they decided what exactly the blend would be for the vintage, the wines were unracked and blending began.
The wine is garnet in color. And oh the mocha. Thhaaaaa mochaaaaaa. And the vanilla, too. This nose is KILLING IT with those coffee beans, cocoa beans, and vanilla beans, man. I freakin' love it! There's also cassis and black cherries playing the fruit role, with cedar and charcoal and mint as a supporting cast. It's medium to full bodied with a dusty mouthfeel and hot tannin. There's flavors of black cherries, juicy plums, burnt caramel, and ancho chiles. It finishes hot and dry with flavors of plums, pencil shavings, and ancho chiles.
Alright, guys. This is $175. That's a lot of dough. Is it worth it? Does it stack up to its competition in its price range? Yes and yes. It's even better than just a recommendation. But I still can't just go ahead and give it a 5 out of 5 in price vs quality because, I mean, it better make me want to drop $175 right now on a bottle even though I can't afford it, and it doesn't quite do that for me. But it's pretty outstanding, and better than other Cabs or Cab-based blends that I've had in the same ball park for asking price.
QUALITY VS PRICE RATING
Price: $175