TARABOSTE | Tribut | Cabernet Sauvignon | 2016
cabernet sauvignon

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Today we’ve decided that the time has come to review a very special wine – a single-varietal cabernet sauvignon wine that is considered to be one of the best local wines – Taraboste Tribut Cabernet Sauvignon 2016 by Château Vartely. Cabernet Sauvignon is grown all over the world in a wide range of climates and regions and it usually has high tannins and high acidity, thus it can produce wines that can mature and develop for many years in the bottle. Cabernet Sauvignon is also a late ripening grape variety, which means that it is best suited to warm climates, yet when all the natural conditions are fitting, it can produce wines that can reach into realms of perfection where they are rarely followed. This particular wine has been aged in hungarian oak barrels for 30 months, with another 12 months in the bottle before it was released on the market. But enough with all that theory – without further ado, let’s move on to the wine tasting.
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Take a look at the tasting notes below and our detailed assessment of the wine:

//Visual
concentration: deep
colour: ruby
clarity: clear
hue/rim: ruby

//Olfactory
intensity: powerful
fruit profile: red fruits | black fruits
__red fruits: ripe sour cherry
__black fruits: black plum | blackcurrant | black cherry | dried black plum
fruit character: ripe | overripe | dried

//Flavor
non fruit: spice | oak | sweet
__spice: red pepper | nutmeg | black pepper | cloves
__oak: roasted oakwood | sweet tobacco | liquorice | hints of charred wood
__sweet: black plum jam | blackberry jam
__wood: new / medium
aroma: primary | secondary

//Palate
sweetness: dry
acidity: high
alcohol: high
tannin: med(+)
__grip: fine-grained
body: round | medium+
balance: good
__dominant: acidity & alcohol
complexity: complex

//Taste
fruit profile: red fruits | black fruits
fruit character: ripe | overripe
non fruit: spice | oak
finish: medium+
aftertaste: seedy-crisp

//Scoring
TARABOSTE | Tribut | Cabernet Sauvignon | 2016
variety: cabernet sauvignon
country: Moldova
region: Valul lui Traian
rating: 93.7

//Conclusion
maturity: developing | on the rise
verdict: great | a must try

//Prediction
RP rating: 91
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This is definitely a great wine of Moldova and, with a total of 93.7 points scored, this wine is right there, among the best wines we’ve rated so far. Check our complete database on the wine rating page, where you can find all the wines that we have tasted and reviewed or go to the about us page and find out more about our exquisite rating system.

Verdict: this is a ripe, rich and fruit-forward cabernet sauvignon wine that has yet to reach the summit of its prime form, therefore it will definitely benefit from another 3 or 4 more years of bottle ageing. This is indeed a wine of great quality, one that delivers fine yet ripe tannins on the palate, crisp even overwhelming acidity on the mouthfeel and very well integrated alcohol levels. The wine has a round, medium-plus body and it feels plump, voluptuous and supple, with just a bit less structure than one would expect from a cabernet sauvignon wine and a seedy-crisp, even tart finale. Tribut is one of the best cabernet sauvignon wines we’ve tasted so far – velvety, complex and well structured, with overripe red & black fruits in the foreground and hints of charred oakwood in the background. This is definitely a wine that is mixing power with finesse, needles to mention that it has to be decanted for at least 30 minutes prior to serving. Enjoy!

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