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Wine Review Online
2021 Acumen PEAK Cabernet Franc - 96 Points
May 2024 | “Just cracking the limit for variety specific labeling with 14 percent Cabernet Sauvignon and 10 percent Merlot in the mix, this producer wisely lets the Cabernet Franc name take top billing anyway as it reflects the core personality of the wine. The combination of Cabernet Franc’s red fruit tones with Atlas Peak’s signature minerality makes for a delightful combination, with rich oak spice adding depth without smothering the primary characteristics. As this ages and the structure mellows it will become a serious beauty, and a cellar trophy you would be wise to add to your collection.”
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Wine Enthusiast Advance Buying Guide
2021 Acumen PEAK Cabernet Franc - 94 Points: Outstanding: a wine of superior character and style
June/July 2024 | “With dense flavor and a firm, upright structure, this wine shows the serious side of Cabernet Franc. Red and black fruits are spun through with coffee, cocoa and graphite. Firm and persistent tannins are palate cleansing and built to age. Consider decanting. Drink 2027–2038.”
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Wine Enthusiast Advance Buying Guide
2021 Acumen Mountainside Cabernet Sauvignon – 93 Points: Outstanding: a wine of superior character and style
June/July 2024 | “Rich with concentration and palate-coating flavor, this wine is approachable and satisfying. Toasty oak aromatics couple with flavors of black fruits, sweet tobacco and freshly ground coffee. Abundant while velvety tannins persist into a long finish.”
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Wine Review Online
2021 Acumen PEAK Edcora Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon - 100 Points
May 2024 | “After tasting blind and arriving at a big score, I remember that I have given this particular bottling the big score in two previous vintages — 2015 and 2016 — and right out of the gate, this vintage appears to be in the same rarified air as those two wines. There is so much going on here, and it’s all just starting to show itself through the structured backbone. The Cabernet hallmarks are here, with lively blackberry and cassis, rich oak spice, crushed rock and earthy mineral notes that are an Atlas Peak signature, all fine-tuned and beautiful. Dare I say this is a bargain when it comes to high end Napa Valley Cabernet? I do so dare — without reservation. Transcendent wine! 100% Cabernet Sauvignon, clones 15 and 169. ”
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Wine Review Online
2021 Acumen PEAK Cabernet Sauvignon - 97 Points
May 2024 | “I have been waiting with bated breath for the 2021 releases from this producer, and the arrival does not disappoint in any way. This multi clone blend is deep and complex, with layered blackberry, cassis, crushed rock, mild dried herb and a little bright kiss from a dash of Merlot in the mix. This program has seen some top notch winemaking talent over the last dozen years, and I can imagine a stack of resumes waiting their turn for a crack at this sourcing. That said, I picture Phillip Corallo-Titus keeping a good hold on the seat. He’s got the touch.”
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The Tasting Panel
2021 Acumen PEAK Cabernet Franc - 95 Points
June 2024 | “This is Acumen's inaugural Cabernet Franc. A mountain grown concentration of fragrant blue fruit, leather, and espresso emerges on entry. Dried violets linger on the tongue with chewy, dusty tannins before black cherry and clove gloss over the palate on the luscious finish.”
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The Tasting Panel
2021 Acumen Mountainside Cabernet Sauvignon – 94 Points
June 2024 | “Astute and high-toned, with skyscraper structure. Purple plum, boysenberry bramble, and soy sauce are vibrant and zippy on the palate, which finishes with blue floral notes and a touch of sandalwood. The fruit was sourced from mountain and hillside vineyards and spent I 8 months in (30% new) French oak.”
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Ken's Wine Guide
2021 Acumen PEAK Edcora Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon - 96 Points
May 2024 | “This midnight-purple colored Cabernet Sauvignon from Acumen opens with a black currant and dried strawberry bouquet with hints of black cherry, black coffee, and fresh tobacco leaf. On the palate, this wine is full bodied with integrated medium plus acidity. The mouthfeel is nicely balanced, super smooth and displays wonderful tension. The flavor profile is concentrated black currant and graphite blend with notes of cinnamon tea and cherry. We also detected hints of sage, clove, black pepper, and oak. The finish is dry, and its refined and polished tannins are nicely sustained. The Tasting Panel would then pair this Cab with Grill 23’s American Kobe Cap Steak. Enjoy.”
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Ken's Wine Guide
2021 Acumen PEAK Cabernet Sauvignon - 93.5 Points
May 2024 | This dark ruby colored Cabernet Sauvignon from Acumen opens with a black currant and black cherry bouquet with hints of cedar, black plum, and violets. On the palate, this wine is medium plus bodied with integrated medium plus acidity. The mouthfeel is balanced, smooth, lush, fresh, and powerful. The flavor profile is black plum and graphite blend with notes of black tea and loam. We also detected hints of cedar, cocoa, strawberry, and faint clove. The finish is dry, and its moderate tannins build-up and for quite some time. This wine needs some time. If you can’t wait, decant it for a while as it benefits from the aeration. The Tasting Panel would then pair this Cab with a Kansas City strip steak or a grilled porterhouse steak. Enjoy.
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Ken's Wine Guide
2014 Acumen PEAK Cabernet Sauvignon - 95 Points
May 2024 | “This library selection Cabernet Sauvignon from Acumen is slightly opaque and dark garnet colored. It opens with a very attractive cedar and black cherry bouquet with hints of cocoa and blueberry. On the palate, this wine is medium bodied with integrated medium acidity. The mouthfeel is nicely balanced, super smooth, seamless, and quite expressive for an aged wine. The flavor profile is a tasty cedar infused cherry blend with notes of graphite and cassis. We also detected some hints of black tea and gentle licorice as well. The finish is dry, and its polished and refined tannins are nicely sustained. This wine is drinking very well right now. The Tasting Panel suggest pairing this Cab with beef wellington. Enjoy ”
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Ken's Wine Guide
2022 Acumen Mountainside Sauvignon Blanc - 93.5 Points
May 2024 | “This pale white gold colored Sauvignon Blanc from Acumen opens with a fragrant white grapefruit and Key lime bouquet with hints of pineapple, lemon, and gardenia. On the palate, this wine is medium bodied with medium plus acidity. The mouthfeel is nicely balanced, really smooth, fresh, and suave for a Sauvignon Blanc. The flavor profile is chalky minerality and gentle lime blend with notes of white grapefruit and ginger. We also detected hints of saline, white pepper, and white peach. The finish is dry, and its flavors drift away nicely. The Tasting Panel would pair this Sauvignon Blanc with pan-seared marinated halibut fillets or with oysters. Enjoy.”
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The Tasting Panel
2018 Acumen Mountainside Cabernet Sauvignon – 94 Points: Outstanding
June 2021 | Bright blue fruit and tart dark cherry engage lavishly with spiced cedar and a hint of ginger and orange peel. The wine is youthful but easy drinking with tannins that dry the tongue – a testament to an inherent minerality with a brushy heather note.
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Forbes
Exploring The Cabernet Sauvignon Of Napa Valley, Part Five: Mountain Wines
May 17, 2021 | Discussing Napa Valley’s mountain appellations as if they’re some sort of monolith is a recipe for over-generalization if you’re not careful. After all, the region’s main mountain AVAs are found over a broad swath of Napa and boast remarkably different geological origins, soil compositions, expositions, and micro-climates
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Forbes
Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon - New Releases
Apr 26, 2021 | Notes on new releases of Cabernet Sauvignon from Napa Valley, including wines from some veteran producers (Pine Ridge, Miner, Turnbull) as well as relative newcomers (Acumen, Somerston).
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Jeb Dunnuck
Napa Valley's 2018s
January 28, 2021 | This report focuses on the 2018s from Napa Valley but also includes several late-release 2017s and 2019s from barrel. In addition, there is always considerable overlap in the Napa report with other regions. Napa producers tend to make wines from Sonoma and other nearby areas, and I’m happy to include them when I can.
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Decanter
Napa Valley Cabernet: 2018 Vintage Report
November 16, 2020 | The best wines show control, poise and transparency between vineyard and appellation, with most of the 2018s well integrated and tastefully seasoned with oak, says Matthew Luczy, who rates 250 wines from the 2018 vintage.
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The Wine Advocate
The Bright, Shiny New Napa Valley 2018s
November 5, 2020 | If a lot of winemakers played the 2017 Napa Valley reds close to their chests, seemingly nervous to show them too soon (or sometimes at all), the opposite was the true of the 2018s. Indeed, I’ve been tracking the progress of many of these bright, shiny new 2018 beauties pretty much since they went to barrel.
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Phillip Titus, Winemaker
May 5, 2020 | Acumen Napa Valley is excited to announce the appointment of Phillip Titus to the position of winemaker. One of the New World’s most distinguished winemakers, and a master at crafting mountain-grown wines, Titus has spent the past three decades as the winemaker for his family’s Titus Vineyards, and at Chappellet Vineyards, where he has earned acclaim—and numerous 100-point scores—crafting mountain-grown wines on Pritchard Hill. In addition to his continued roles at Titus Vineyards and Chappellet, Titus will work with Acumen’s team, which includes renowned Viticulturist Garrett Buckland and Assistant Winemaker José Rodriquez, to guide Acumen’s winemaking program on Atlas Peak.
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Forbes
Acumen - A New Shining Star from Napa Valley
September 12, 2019 | It’s this restrained manner of Cabernet Sauvignon that renders the Acumen wines as being so special. This signature style will certainly help in terms of identity, but apart from that, the Acumen Cabernets are much more enjoyable upon release that many counterpart wines from Napa Valley. For dinner tonight, would you rather opt for a wine than is huge and brimming with ripe fruit and big tannins, or would you prefer a first-rate wine that can actually be enjoyed now? I’m sure for most of us, the choice is an easy one.
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Wine Review Online
2015 Acumen PEAK Edcora Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon - 100 Points
June 25, 2019 | “A very impressive wine that hearkens back to the early days of the Napa Valley, when age-worthy structure and balance were king. Intense berry fruit aromas are joined by notes of fig, baker's chocolate and savory hints of meat and dried herbs. It's all there on the palate, with a rich earthy character in front at present that will feather itself into the mix with further aging. Perfectly balanced, nuanced and thought provoking, and a definite cellar trophy at what's become a bargain price for such a wine. This isn't a score I throw out very often, but there's so much to offer here-I'm all in. Contains 6% Petit Verdot and 4% Cabernet Franc.”
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South Florida Reporter
Wines For Valentine’s Day
FEB 2019 | 2015 Acumen PEAK Edcora Vineyard & Mountainside Cabernet Sauvignons
Acumen PEAK Edcora Vineyard 2015 ($150). Denis Malbec joined Henrik Poulsen in making some great wines from mountain-grown grapes on Atlas Peak, but sadly the 2015 are his last. Malbec died in 2016. Acumen’s stellar portfolio of premium red wines reveals the greatness that comes from mountainside grapes. This one – a blend of cabernet sauvignon (90 percent), petite verdot and cabernet franc – is deep, complex and layered with expressive aromas of violets and espresso. Black cherries and wild blackberries are cloaked in promising tannins. Acumen makes a 2015 Mountainside Cabernet Sauvignon ($60) that uses less new oak and more merlot and malbec for a delicious and more approachable blend.
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JebDunnuck.com
North Coast Part 1: Napa Valley’s Incredible 2017's
JAN 2019 | 2017 Acumen PEAK Sauvignon Blanc – 92 Points
“The flagship white is the 2017 Sauvignon Blanc Peak, which is all Sauvignon Blanc sourced from the Atlas Peak AVA. This medium gold-colored effort offers a vibrant nose of citrus blossom, white grapefruit, and hints of spice in a juicy, medium-bodied, beautifully balanced, pure style. It's a terrific Sauvignon Blanc from Napa that's well worth drinking. Maturity 2019 – 2022.”
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ModernWine.com
2017 Acumen Mountainside Sauvignon Blanc
NOV 2018 | "The Sauvignon Blanc is made very much in the white Bordeaux model, broad and melony with stirred lees to give it great mouthfeel and a dose of oak aging that lends a spicy, toasty finish. It's an impressive wine with great concentration of flavor, and the oak is well integrated, so the wine isn't overly 'woody.'”
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Wine Review Online
2014 Acumen Mountainside Red Wine
NOV 2018 | “A blend of Bordeaux varieties made in a rich, fruit forward style that’s sure to please. Typical blackberry, cassis and cigar box spice aromas and flavors abound, and lively acidity carries the flavors through a bright finish where more red cherry and plum flavors make themselves known. There’s AVA structure here not often found in this price range. A solid buy from a producer to watch!”
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D Magazine
What To Drink Now: Sauvignon Blanc
NOV 2018 | "Mountainside-grown Sauvignon Blanc is not the norm in Napa, but Acumen is proving that nuanced whites can be made from steep Atlas Peak slopes. Aromatic and inviting, the wine is layered with lemon leaf, jasmine, and pear.”
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Vinography
Vinography Unboxed: Week of 10/28/18
NOV 2018 | "...I've got a couple of stunning Cabernets from the higher elevations of Napa to recommend. These two wines from Acumen vineyards are wonderful -- clocking in at close to 14% alcohol with great acidity, great balance, and remarkably well integrated oak. Totally delicious and worth finding..."
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Wine Review Online
2014 Acumen Mountainside & PEAK Cabernet Sauvignon
OCT 2018 | “The grapes for this (2014 Edcora Vineyard) Cabernet are from a southwest facing vineyard on Atlas Peak, bringing lively ripe fruit aromas and flavors of cherry, blueberry and fall spice, complemented by a rich dry earth minerality that adds a lot of depth and interest. This is a solidly structured wine that’s just beginning to speak. Age it well -- 15 years isn’t out of the question – or decant long near term. This is a winery to watch! Contains 3% Petit Verdot and 1% Cabernet Franc.”
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Wine Advocate
USA, Northern California, Napa Valley: 2016 & 2017 – A Tale of Two Vintages
OCT 2018 | “The 2017 Sauvignon Blanc Peak unfurls to reveal fragrant lime blossoms and honeysuckle scents over a core of fresh grapefruit, lemon curd and crushed rocks plus a waft of baker's yeast. Medium to full-bodied, it bursts in the mouth with loads of citrus and mineral layers and a crisp, refreshing line with a very long, chalky finish. 2018 – 2025.”
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Robb Report
Acumen Napa Valley Has Wine That Lights Up Atlas Peak
AUG 2018 | "In the aftermath of last year's wildfires, a world-class wine estate matures in Napa."
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South Florida Reporter
How About A Wine For Dad?
JUNE 7, 2018 | “This Napa producer makes a series of stunning, colossal cabernet sauvignons from vineyards on Atlas Peak. Founded by Eric Yuan only a couple of years ago, Acumen is showing great potential with mountain-grown grapes.”
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7x7 Magazine
Napa's Acumen Wine Gallery is an artful spot for tasting
JAN 24, 2018 | "A new name is emerging on Atlas Peak that aims to solidify the appellation as one ofNapa Valley's premier regions for fine, age-worthy cabernet sauvignon."
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7 X 7 Magazine
6 Napa Valley wine regions where you can taste on foot
JUL 19, 2017 | The super luxe Acumen tasting salon features a rotating art gallery, barrel samples on tap, and recycled furniture pieces… The wines are just as refined, sourced from one of Napa Valley's most prized and under-the-radar mountainous regions, Atlas Peak.
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Wine Enthusiast
Mastering Napa's Mountains
June 2017 | “Another high-profile project is Acumen Wines… it’s a high-elevation, rocky site six miles off the Silverado Trail and above the fog line. Its 32 acres, now known as Attelas, are certified organic.”
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Napa Valley Register
Acumen opens downtown gallery
May 25, 2017 | “Unlike most downtown tasting room, Acumen’s incorporates a high-end art gallery that will feature a rotating collection of art… the striking space also includes a small wine bar where taps dispense some samples as well as a private tasting room and a glass-front closet for wines.”
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Jancis Robinson
Acumen, the importance of the human factor
Apr 10, 2017 | “Delicious, herbal, tree character here that gives a savoury depth to the wine and again that mountain rock element throughout. 18.5+ out of 20 points”
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