Cain (4.88)






Open: Mon-Sat, tastings at 10:00am and 11:30am

Appt required? Yes

Last barlinwine.com visit: 2011

Directions:


View Napa in a larger map or Get Directions

Tasting:
Dramamine required! A visit up Spring Mountain to Cain Vineyards is not for the weak of stomach or the frequently carsick. To give you an idea of what it takes to get to Cain, you cross two cattle guards and pass a road sign that says “End” before you reach the winery. But you can’t have privacy without requiring a little work to get there, and the destination is worth the journey.

Cain specializes in Cabernet and Bordeaux blends, the principle wines of consumption in the Barlin household. We arrived early for our 11:30 tasting and were joined by five other people. Typically, tastings at Cain are limited to 2-4 people, but given it was the weekend, they expanded our group. Our hostess Jenny started us off with a stroll around the winery. Given it was mid-summer, the leaves blocked some of the view of the valley, but through the trees you could get glimpses of the amazing vista typically accessible from the winery.
At over 2000 feet, Cain is one of the highest wineries in the area. We proceeded on to the fermentation room, where Jenny gave us a quick rundown of the winemaking process at Cain, followed by a peek into the barrel room. The modestly sized room held all 2009 and 2010 wine, with bottling of 2009’s scheduled for a few weeks after we were there to make room for 2011.

At last, we returned to the tasting room and were seated around a large table. We started off with a bang: a 1999 Cain Concept, Cain’s mid-level Bordeaux blend. 1999 is a favorite year of mine, and this wine was just at its peak. Jenny opened it for the tasting, and I would have loved to try it after a few hours of decanting, but it was still quite good. We followed that with a pour of the same wine from 2007. This, for Steph and I, was the star of the show. Mostly Merlot and Cab, it was blended beautifully with mild tannins and delicious fruit. Next came the 2006 Cain Five, Cain’s flagship wine. This wine added extra structure to what we tasted with the Cain Concept and was quite good. But at twice the price, I didn’t feel this was twice the wine of our first. We finished the tasting with the Cain Cuvee, an non vintage blend of ’06 and ’07 grapes. This was an easy-drinking wine that balanced good fruit with low tannins, much like the Cain Concept but with somewhat less depth.

Our tasting concluded with the most pleasant surprise of all – the tasting sheet! The wines were priced about where I think they should be, but Cain offers a “Cellar Door Discount”, something I hadn’t seen anywhere else but something I would absolutely do if I ever ran a tasting room. Prior to my trip to New Zealand, I wouldn’t have known what a Cellar Door was, but all across NZ and Australia the winery tasting rooms are referred to as Cellar Doors instead. At Cain, each wine was 10-20% off if purchased at the winery. In addition, Cain charges no tasting fee and ships up to a case of wine via cold case for a flat $25 fee. Failla, why can’t you take note of this! Or Hartford! I paid $33 to ship 3 bottles of Hartford wine to Chicago, and I can ship 12 from Cain for $25? Great value for your experience, overly friendly people, and very good wine makes Cain definitely worth the stomach-turning trip up their winding mountain road.









Recommended wine:The Cain Five was very good, but my favorite wine (especially factoring in price) was the 2007 Cain Concept.

Ratings (out of 5):


WINE
4.50
TASTING ROOM
5.00

ATMOSPHERE
5.00
VALUE
5.00

OVERALL
4.88

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