Colgin Cariad Napa Valley 2000

Colgin’s Merlot-rich Bordeaux blend from David Abreu’s Madrona Ranch — the 2000 Cariad is a 650-case cult Napa red, made by Mark Aubert, now fully mature.

Taste
Red currant, plum, kirsch, and orange rind over tobacco leaf, roasted coffee, and warm earth. Layered and concentrated, with good acidity and firm, now-resolved tannin — Colgin’s Napa answer to Saint-Émilion.

Region
From Madrona Ranch in the western hills above St. Helena, farmed by David Abreu, with Petit Verdot from Thorevilos. Cariad — Welsh for “love” — is Colgin’s Bordeaux-style blend; the 2000 is 55% Cabernet Sauvignon, 35% Merlot, 5% Cabernet Franc, and 5% Petit Verdot, 650 cases, made under winemaker Mark Aubert.

About This Wine
Body: Full body, settled · Acidity: Fresh, integrated · Texture: Velvety, resolved tannin

Taste Profile

Source: Vivino community taste data (89 member taste ratings, all vintages).

Best For
Cult Napa gift for a serious collector, milestone dinner, 2000 birth-year or anniversary bottle, mature Merlot-led blend for a Pomerol drinker

For Who
Collectors who know Colgin, Harlan, and Screaming Eagle by name; gift-givers who need a rare bottle; hosts who want a mature Napa red that drinks now

Similar To
If you like Dominus, Harlan Estate, or mature Saint-Émilion grand cru, this is the same register — Bordeaux structure, Napa fruit, cult scarcity, at peak.

Pairing
Aged ribeye, braised short rib, lamb shoulder, roast duck, wild mushroom dishes, Korean BBQ (galbi), aged Comté

Drink Window
Drink now through 2030. Fully mature — no further cellar time needed.

Collector Note
2000 was an early, even Napa season until a cold, rainy October slowed late-ripening Cabernet — which is why the Merlot-led Cariad shone. Robert Parker called it one of the wines of the vintage, and on re-tasting in 2011 rated it 95 points, fully mature with a decade ahead. Colgin sells only to its mailing list; 650 cases were made. Decant 45 minutes; serve at 62–65°F.

Mood
Cult, reverent, mature, generous

Frequently Asked Questions

Q: What is Cariad, and how is it different from Colgin’s other wines?
A: Cariad is Colgin’s Bordeaux-style blend, named for the Welsh word for love. Where Colgin’s Herb Lamb, Tychson Hill, and IX Estate are Cabernet-driven single sites, Cariad leans on Merlot from David Abreu’s Madrona Ranch — rounder, earthier, more Right Bank in feel.

Q: Is a 26-year-old Napa blend still drinking well?
A: Yes. Parker re-tasted the 2000 in 2011 and found it fully mature with another decade in it; Colgin says the structure carries it a further twenty years. Expect dried red fruit, tobacco, and earth rather than primary fruit — a wine at peak, not past it.

Q: Why is this Colgin priced below the current releases?
A: Colgin’s current single-vineyard wines release well above this. The 2000 Cariad is a library vintage from a smaller, Merlot-led cuvée — the same producer and farming, at the mature end of its life rather than the cellar end.