Freddy R. Troya

9.5

The Cave – Red Blend – 2020
Galilee, Israel 🇮🇱

Overview
A powerful Bordeaux-inspired blend composed of 65% Cabernet Sauvignon, 26% Merlot, and 9% Petit Verdot, sourced from high-elevation vineyards in the Upper Galilee. Aged 24 months in French oak inside the historic Carmel Mountain cave, a naturally cool, humidity-stable cellar that shapes the wine’s depth and structure. Mevushal / Kosher for Passover.

Aromas & Flavors
Dark mulberries, black plum, and blackberry compote meet cedar, mahogany wood, espresso, and subtle graphite. The Petit Verdot adds an herbal-floral edge, giving the wine both muscle and nuance.

Mouthfeel
Full-bodied with firm, assertive tannins and a deep, wood-toned intensity. Concentrated, layered, and long, with an oaky spine that lingers on the finish.

Food Pairings
Braised lamb shoulder, smoky short ribs, aged Gouda, slow-roasted brisket, or charred portobello mushrooms.

Verdict
One of Israel’s most characterful red blends, bold, structured, and cellar-worthy. The interplay of fruit density, mineral tension, and pronounced oak makes this a standout Mevushal wine for those who appreciate power and polish. Cheers!

Did You Know?
The Cave winery ages its wines in a 250-year-old man-carved cave in Carmel Mountain, originally quarried in the 18th century and repurposed in the 19th century as a brandy cellar. Its natural insulation provides ideal conditions for long élevage, giving these wines their signature depth and aging potential. — 16 days ago

Joshua Fisher

9.4

the wine is identified.. can you identify the man? — 6 years ago

Mark Flesher

9.6

Man, this is really when these wine should be consumed... the unfortunate truth is that my willpower to hold these wines for 10 years post vintage is just about zero. Lucky for me I kind of forgot about some of these, enabling me to experience them at full maturity. This wine was built to kick ass. And that is exactly what it is doing tonight. Black fruit, tar, hedonistic black fruit from start to finish. Tannin that is resolving and integrating nicely. Wine is balanced amazingly well from front to back. The last one of these I opened was with @Shay A and doing well....but I think it has really come into prime! This one only took about 15 minutes of air to start expressing its maturity. I think the last bottle took about an hour. I would say this wine is just about as top of the Heap as it can get. DRINK NOW! — 7 years ago

Matthew Cohen

9.7

Needs 90 minutes. Before then it’s really weird. Goes from a 7.0 to a 9.7 in 2 hours. Yes. It’s true.

Nose graphite explosion. Blackberry flower. Cherry flower.

Palate is silky blackberry. Man. That Forte elegance. Gorgeous shimmering mountain stream infused with blackberries.

As this opens more nose is gorgeous blackberry flower. Palate is Pete t blackberry flower. Hint of graphite.

Wow. So close to melo and anfiteatro.

This needs to be glass decanted. You get new weirdness from the beginning with each pour.

Internal@aromatics are wow! Blackberry liquor. Lilacs. Expansive. Delicious. Liquid silk made from flowers.

Finish is the most gorgeous elegant blackberry liquor. Hint of savoriness. Wow wow wow. Wine.

With more air intense lilacs and violets.

Fass selections. — 3 years ago

Tree Kilpatrick

9.1

Dark color. Like plums and blood. Nose is juice box and cherries in the sun. Flavor is extracted. Blueberries and black licorice. Herbaceous. Chewy. Plenty of zing for the zang. Kind of a açaí thing in it (meaning mountain blueberries meets bittersweet chocolate). Finish is clean and nicely tart. It’s muy fantastico Spanish red. — 6 years ago

Matt Perlman

9.1

Happy 4th! Signed by the man himself, Ben Smith, during a wonderful visit to the winery in Seattle some years ago. The wine has years to develop but ready to drink—gorgeous cherry, vanilla, cedar, figs, menthol and unsweetened cocoa — 6 years ago

Tree Kilpatrick

9.1

Hipster label. Elegant I guess. Very dark. Obsucro. Smells like mochas (coffee meets chocolate) sweet sweat, red berries and anise. Flavors of meats, soil, mountain huckleberries, and elderberry syrup. This is lovely, complex, dense stuff. Affordable too. Maybe Santa Lucia Highlands should focus on Syrah over Pinot Noir. — 5 years ago

Andy Hall

9.5

Last pull for Thanksgiving and man it did not disappoint. Hit all the notes I look for in a cab: big black fruit, balance, structure and layers of depth. — 5 years ago

Tobin Trevarthen

8.9

A nice pale yellow Chardonnay. No Malo. Crisp stainless steel meets used oak, yielded a very nice profile. — 6 years ago

Spike Duncan

9.0

A lovely, sweet taste! — 6 years ago