DYNAMITE CALIFORNIA RED

CALIFORNIA RED BLEND BY LEVIATHAN WINE 2018

There is a short list of Napa Valley winemakers that can be called truly iconic. Andy Erickson, winemaker of California Red Blend by Leviathan Wine 2018 is one of those names; his history is inextricably linked to Cult Napa Cabernet having been the winemaker at Screaming Eagle, Ovid, and Harlan. For almost two decades Andy has been synonymous with the best that California has to offer.

This wine, from a globally revered icon, is one of the greatest value opportunities to drink the very best of California. 

California Red Blend by Leviathan Wine 2018 is made with his wife Annie who has worked with and for Kongsgaard, Cathy Corison and David Abreu. This wine, from a globally revered icon, is one of the greatest value opportunities to drink the very best of California. 

The San Francisco Chronicle’s Jon Bonné said about the Ericksons, “Together they could probably create a 98-point wine in their sleep.”

Together the Ericksons could probably create a 98-point wine in their sleep.

Jon Bonne, san Francisco Chronicle

Their 2018 Leviathan is a Bordeaux blend (Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Cabernet Franc) from sites hand picked by Andy from Northern California, with most of the grapes from Napa. This is a rich, full wine that is almost miraculously light on it’s feet. Each vintage is finely-tuned, intended to be bright and fruit-driven in its youth, yet entirely worthy of cellaring.

This sublimely elegant Cabernet driven red is easy to confuse with a triple-digit cult Napa Cabernet or even high-class Bordeaux. California Red Blend by Leviathan 2018 is a mandatory reference point for those who love drinking the best of California, without the $500 price tag that normally goes with it.

WHAT THE CRITICS SAY

“Always a great value, the 2018 California Red Wine is a Bordeaux blend put together by Andy Erickson. The wine reveals a ruby/purple hue as well as complex notes of red and black fruits, green tobacco, cedary spice, and spring flowers. These all flow to a medium to full-bodied, elegant wine that offers good overall concentration, seamless tannins, and a great finish. This is one of the more age-worthy examples of this cuvée that I recall.”

94 Points
​Jeb Dunnuck, January 2021

California Red Blend by Leviathan 2018 is a mandatory reference point for those who love drinking the best of California, without the $500 price tag that normally goes with it.

CALIFORNIA RED BLEND BY LEVIATHAN WINE 2018: CHARACTERISTICS

BODY /  STYLE / OAK / Full-bodied / bold, intense, fruity and mineral / Oaked

SWEETNESS / Dry

CELLARING / Drink now or cellar

BEST PAIRINGS / Cured Meat, Red Meat, Steak

TASTING NOTE / “Always a great value, the 2018 California Red Wine is a Bordeaux blend put together by Andy Erickson. The wine reveals a ruby/purple hue as well as complex notes of red and black fruits, green tobacco, cedary spice, and spring flowers. These all flow to a medium to full-bodied, elegant wine that offers good overall concentration, seamless tannins, and a great finish. This is one of the more age-worthy examples of this cuvée that I recall.”

This is one of the more age-worthy examples of this cuvée that I recall.

94 Points – Jeb Dunnck, January 2021

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