“A subtle, almost delicate French oak character melds with abundant black-fruit notes and firm fine-grained tannins in this full-bodied but well-balanced wine. It’s a great example of what the warmer inland areas of Mendocino can produce.” - Jim Gordon
The Contento Ranch is a beautiful, hillside vineyard, which gives this wine its distinct character of concentrated fruit and complex layers. Aromas of cinnamon stick, dried currants, and black cherries lead into a rich wine with hints of molasses and dark chocolate. Nice round tannins resulting in a long, smooth finish of cherry, honey, and vanilla spice.
Vineyard Notes
Brutocao Family Vineyards is a fourth generation family owned and operated winery crafting award winning wines in southern Mendocino County. The property has been in the family since 1943 and is made up of four ranches, which allow Brutocao to produce 100% estate wines. From the first vintage in 1980, through this current vintage, it is the quality of the vineyards that shines through every bottle. Hoss Milone, a 4th generation winemaker from Mendocino County, joined the team in 2009. With his local roots and 18 years of experience at Ferrari Carano, Hoss brings another dimension to our line of Brutocao Family wines.
Specs
Vintage: 2017
Varietal: 100% Cabernet Sauvignon
Appellation: Mendocino
Barrel Regime: 18 months in 50% French and 50% American oak to offer complexity and rich flavors
How much more are you saving by buying a full case?
(Note: Tax & Shipping not included in savings calculations)
2017 Brutocao Cabernet Sauvignon - $55 = 24.43%
Hi All,
On Friday I got the Golden Ticket. It was weird because as I started to look up some Casemate orders, my Ring doorbell started ringing! I thought that maybe Casemates implemented an instantaneous shipping policy! Thanks to Alice and WD49 for a great year of wine!
The temperature of the wine was 60F@ delivery. Since I wanted my son to participate, we held off on opening it until yesterday. He was going to be making a smoked pork butt for pulled pork and I was going to make Sous Vide NY Strip Steaks. On to the wine…
On Sunday I pulled the cork around 11 am. The cork looked normal. After 5 minutes, I pour a little into a Casemates glass, gave it a little swirl, smelled it, and then took a sip.
Visual: Nice clear red color that I would expect in a med. body Cab Sauvignon, but it looked a little deeper than a medium body Cab.
Nose: It was very nice! I got cherry and other fruit I couldn’t identify, a little spice, and a touch of alcohol. Impressed! (Sorry, we got over COVID mid-Nov! Taste buds coming back weirdly!)
Taste: The initial taste of the 1st pour was disappointing. The fruit was muted. I got a little spice, very light alcohol, and the rest was chalky tannins on a long finish. I wasn’t worried at that point because I like to let freshly opened bottles a chance to breathe. After an hour of an open bottle, I put a vacuum plug on it and pumped until I felt resistance.
Around 2:45 pm my son arrived with his 15 mo. old daughter. After we got her settled in, we (my son & I) sampled the bottle. We both got cherry fruit. I picked up some cedar and again some fruit I again couldn’t identify. We both got a little tartness and the same chalky tannins on a long finish. At that point, we felt that it was a medium body that was very easy to drink. In fact, my son wanted 2 more samples, but I said not until food.
He was back at 5:15 pm, with the smoked pork butt. I pulled the steaks from the Sous Vide water bath. As he pulled the pork, I seared the steak with his “blow torch”. His wife (NNP) had to work that night in the NICU so he split up the pulled pork, got his daughter so his family could eat together before she left to be someone’s HERO that night!
So with my med, med-rare NY Strip steak, lightly smoked pulled pork, scalloped potatoes, and mixed veggies, I dug in! The food was excellent and my 1st sip of wine was…OUTSTANDING!! WOW!! The wine cut through the unseen fat in the meat! Everything about the wine was great…the fruit, the light tartness and alcohol, and the nice finish! I wanted to save some for today, but it was so good with the food, the bottle emptied too quickly!
Summary: This wine drinks easy! It’s not a heavy Cab! It’s not as good alone as it is with the right food. It was OUTSTANDING with the freshly pulled pork and the Sous Vide strip steak. I better get this posted before everyone starts saying “Where’s the Rats”! I would expect a West Coast retail price between $30 -$40. Haven’t looked to see what the Casemates price is!
@Boatman72 Geez, two things…one and most important I hope you’re doing well from the Covid thing, and two, I think maybe going forward we need disclosure from all rats if Covid comes into play on the tasting notes
Upon opening the box we found a rather hefty bottle from the Hopland Ranches in Mendocino. For those of you who don’t know Hopland, it is one of those - blink and you drive past it type of towns which also has a restaurant that is famous for homemade pies that one of the servers makes. It also just so happens that my wife and I got married in Hopland in 2013 at a winery called Campovida just after they renovated it and before Matt Saracen of Friday Night Lights got married there. I’m very sure we could not afford it now…
Anyway, to the wine…
After letting the bottle rest for a few hours, the cork came out clean with minimal staining. The color is medium ruby with a touch of purple.
On the nose, there was a mild heat which blew off quickly. Both detected some muted fruited of currents and maybe some tart cherries. We were hoping some time and air would benefit the nose.
On the palate, we both got darker fruit with some tartness that made our teeth grind slightly but not in a bad way or too much. We didn’t plan very well for the wine and paired it with mushrooms and goat cheese galette and a persimmon and goat cheese salad. Surprisingly, the wine and goat cheese was a great paring and really push out the fruit in the wine. Though this wine does not need food, we really enjoyed it with the meal.
The next day we did notice some more fruit on the nose but nothing really jumped at us. The fruit on the palate did open to some deeper dark fruit.
Overall this is a great medium-bodied cab that can be enjoyed with or without food though I really think food helps this wine. My wife thought it was a very well made wine, balanced wine, and enjoyed it very much. She guessed the price at $20 retail. Now seeing a sub $15 Casemates price, we are in for a case!
Hello Casemates fans, Steve Brutocao here. Thanks for all the kind words and support of our family winery. The reviews are spot on towards the type of wines we are trying to produce. Our grandpa, Irv Bliss, bought the property in 1943, and when you grow the fruit yourself I think it is only natural to try to highlight the unique qualities of that fruit. We don’t over ripen in an attempt to produce a bigger, jammy wine, we like the medium bodied style that showcases the subtle flavors and layers in the wine. We try not to over oak it, instead we use a selection of elegant French oak that complements the fruit and doesn’t mask it. It is great to hear different descriptors about the wine and hear what different people pick up in aromas and flavors. I think it speaks to what makes exploring wines fun, everyone can have a different take on a particular wine and none of you are wrong. And i think it keeps you coming back for more, to try to pick up on even more of the nuances that a particular wine has.
Thank you all again for your support, we hope you enjoy the wine and have a safe and healthy, Happy Holiday season
2017 Brutocao Estate Cabernet Sauvignon, Hopland Ranches, Mendocino
Tasting Notes
92 points ~ Wine Enthusiast
Vineyard Notes
Specs
Included in the Box
About The Winery
Winery: Brutocao Family Vineyards
Available States
AZ, CA, CO, CT, DC, FL, GA, IL, IN, IA, KS, ME, MD, MA, MI, MN, MO, MT, NV, NH, NJ, NY, NC, ND, OH, OK, OR, PA, TN, TX, VA, WA, WI
Estimated Delivery
Monday, Jan 4
Brutocao Cabernet Sauvignon
4 bottles for $74.99 $18.75/bottle + $2/bottle shipping
Case of 12 for $169.99 $14.17/bottle + $1/bottle shipping
2017 Brutocao Cabernet Sauvignon
How much more are you saving by buying a full case?
(Note: Tax & Shipping not included in savings calculations)
2017 Brutocao Cabernet Sauvignon - $55 = 24.43%
peaceful-jolly-magic
Hi All,
On Friday I got the Golden Ticket. It was weird because as I started to look up some Casemate orders, my Ring doorbell started ringing! I thought that maybe Casemates implemented an instantaneous shipping policy! Thanks to Alice and WD49 for a great year of wine!
The temperature of the wine was 60F@ delivery. Since I wanted my son to participate, we held off on opening it until yesterday. He was going to be making a smoked pork butt for pulled pork and I was going to make Sous Vide NY Strip Steaks. On to the wine…
On Sunday I pulled the cork around 11 am. The cork looked normal. After 5 minutes, I pour a little into a Casemates glass, gave it a little swirl, smelled it, and then took a sip.
Visual: Nice clear red color that I would expect in a med. body Cab Sauvignon, but it looked a little deeper than a medium body Cab.
Nose: It was very nice! I got cherry and other fruit I couldn’t identify, a little spice, and a touch of alcohol. Impressed! (Sorry, we got over COVID mid-Nov! Taste buds coming back weirdly!)
Taste: The initial taste of the 1st pour was disappointing. The fruit was muted. I got a little spice, very light alcohol, and the rest was chalky tannins on a long finish. I wasn’t worried at that point because I like to let freshly opened bottles a chance to breathe. After an hour of an open bottle, I put a vacuum plug on it and pumped until I felt resistance.
Around 2:45 pm my son arrived with his 15 mo. old daughter. After we got her settled in, we (my son & I) sampled the bottle. We both got cherry fruit. I picked up some cedar and again some fruit I again couldn’t identify. We both got a little tartness and the same chalky tannins on a long finish. At that point, we felt that it was a medium body that was very easy to drink. In fact, my son wanted 2 more samples, but I said not until food.
He was back at 5:15 pm, with the smoked pork butt. I pulled the steaks from the Sous Vide water bath. As he pulled the pork, I seared the steak with his “blow torch”. His wife (NNP) had to work that night in the NICU so he split up the pulled pork, got his daughter so his family could eat together before she left to be someone’s HERO that night!
So with my med, med-rare NY Strip steak, lightly smoked pulled pork, scalloped potatoes, and mixed veggies, I dug in! The food was excellent and my 1st sip of wine was…OUTSTANDING!! WOW!! The wine cut through the unseen fat in the meat! Everything about the wine was great…the fruit, the light tartness and alcohol, and the nice finish! I wanted to save some for today, but it was so good with the food, the bottle emptied too quickly!
Summary: This wine drinks easy! It’s not a heavy Cab! It’s not as good alone as it is with the right food. It was OUTSTANDING with the freshly pulled pork and the Sous Vide strip steak. I better get this posted before everyone starts saying “Where’s the Rats”! I would expect a West Coast retail price between $30 -$40. Haven’t looked to see what the Casemates price is!
@Boatman72 Geez, two things…one and most important I hope you’re doing well from the Covid thing, and two, I think maybe going forward we need disclosure from all rats if Covid comes into play on the tasting notes
@Boatman72 Thank you for reviewing. Sorry you had Covid and hope you’re doing okay.
Hello All,
Brutocao 2017 Cabernet Savignon, Hopland Ranches
Upon opening the box we found a rather hefty bottle from the Hopland Ranches in Mendocino. For those of you who don’t know Hopland, it is one of those - blink and you drive past it type of towns which also has a restaurant that is famous for homemade pies that one of the servers makes. It also just so happens that my wife and I got married in Hopland in 2013 at a winery called Campovida just after they renovated it and before Matt Saracen of Friday Night Lights got married there. I’m very sure we could not afford it now…
Anyway, to the wine…
After letting the bottle rest for a few hours, the cork came out clean with minimal staining. The color is medium ruby with a touch of purple.
On the nose, there was a mild heat which blew off quickly. Both detected some muted fruited of currents and maybe some tart cherries. We were hoping some time and air would benefit the nose.
On the palate, we both got darker fruit with some tartness that made our teeth grind slightly but not in a bad way or too much. We didn’t plan very well for the wine and paired it with mushrooms and goat cheese galette and a persimmon and goat cheese salad. Surprisingly, the wine and goat cheese was a great paring and really push out the fruit in the wine. Though this wine does not need food, we really enjoyed it with the meal.
The next day we did notice some more fruit on the nose but nothing really jumped at us. The fruit on the palate did open to some deeper dark fruit.
Overall this is a great medium-bodied cab that can be enjoyed with or without food though I really think food helps this wine. My wife thought it was a very well made wine, balanced wine, and enjoyed it very much. She guessed the price at $20 retail. Now seeing a sub $15 Casemates price, we are in for a case!
Thanks again to Casemates for this opportunity!
@Nel250 Thank you for the report. Yes, if you do blink, one may miss the cute town of Hopland.
Anyone in SF want to split? I’m down for 3 or 4 bottles.
/giphy colorful-happiest-fun
In for a case. Sounds like a decent QPR and right in my wheelhouse style-wise.
Hello Casemates fans, Steve Brutocao here. Thanks for all the kind words and support of our family winery. The reviews are spot on towards the type of wines we are trying to produce. Our grandpa, Irv Bliss, bought the property in 1943, and when you grow the fruit yourself I think it is only natural to try to highlight the unique qualities of that fruit. We don’t over ripen in an attempt to produce a bigger, jammy wine, we like the medium bodied style that showcases the subtle flavors and layers in the wine. We try not to over oak it, instead we use a selection of elegant French oak that complements the fruit and doesn’t mask it. It is great to hear different descriptors about the wine and hear what different people pick up in aromas and flavors. I think it speaks to what makes exploring wines fun, everyone can have a different take on a particular wine and none of you are wrong. And i think it keeps you coming back for more, to try to pick up on even more of the nuances that a particular wine has.
Thank you all again for your support, we hope you enjoy the wine and have a safe and healthy, Happy Holiday season
Welcome Steve!
@rjquillin
Are you able to get him his winery “grapes” badge?
@kawichris650 @sbrutocao
done, thanks to @Jayme with the power to do so.