Sullivan's cabs - a recommendation request

I have a client who wants to dine at Sullivan's Steak House in King of Prussia. It's a chain with probably pretty much the same wines at each location. I think Cal cab would be the type of wine of choice for a collection of non-geeks to enjoy with steak.

I drink Bordeaux but would be interested in trying a good, representative Cal cab in my price range, personally, up to $60 retail, except for special bottles from time to time. If anyone happens to have time to check out the quite massive Sullivan's wine list online, I would be very interested in having a couple of good cabs identified to try, since I will have the opportunity to drink a couple. There might be eight people or so in the party; therefore, we will need a few bottles. We would probabaly spend between $50 and $80 per bottle. Thanks in advance.

Covert

There are actually some very decent choices on that list. I am unsure of whether you want to try a CalCab that is representative of the genre, or one that is likely to appeal to your tastes -- those are two largely non-overlapping sets. Assuming for the nonce the latter, I'd suggest the '05 Clos du Val Cab (the '95 has been panned in recent CellarTracker notes) or the '04 Jordan (the '00 also isn't well reviewed in CT). The '04 Mondavi Reserve is one of the stars of the list, but probably outside your price range (it retails for $100 or more). The '03 Dunn is also a classic CalCab, but painfully young.

Mark Lipton

There are actually some very decent choices on that list. I am unsure of whether you want to try a CalCab that is representative of the genre, or one that is likely to appeal to your tastes -- those are two largely non-overlapping sets. Assuming for the nonce the latter, I'd suggest the '05 Clos du Val Cab (the '95 has been panned in recent CellarTracker notes) or the '04 Jordan (the '00 also isn't well reviewed in CT). The '04 Mondavi Reserve is one of the stars of the list, but probably outside your price range (it retails for $100 or more). The '03 Dunn is also a classic CalCab, but painfully young.

Mark, thanks very much. I will order a couple of your suggestions, if the restaurant has them. Maybe if the party is big enough I can sneak in the Mondavi, but probably not. There are a number of Bordeaux I would order if it were just I; but from experience, almost nobody you would take for business would prefer a Bordeaux over a Cal cab. So this is an opportunity for me to step out of my sandbox.

Covert

[Jenise]

There are actually some very decent choices on that list. I am unsure of whether you want to try a CalCab that is representative of the genre, or one that is likely to appeal to your tastes -- those are two largely non-overlapping sets. Assuming for the nonce the latter, I'd suggest the '05 Clos du Val Cab (the '95 has been panned in recent CellarTracker notes) or the '04 Jordan (the '00 also isn't well reviewed in CT). The '04 Mondavi Reserve is one of the stars of the list, but probably outside your price range (it retails for $100 or more). The '03 Dunn is also a classic CalCab, but painfully young.

Mark, thanks very much. I will order a couple of your suggestions, if the restaurant has them. Maybe if the party is big enough I can sneak in the Mondavi, but probably not. There are a number of Bordeaux I would order if it were just I; but from experience, almost nobody you would take for business would prefer a Bordeaux over a Cal cab. So this is an opportunity for me to step out of my sandbox.

Covert

Aren't Sullivans Steak houses related to the Napa winery of the same name? I thought I learned that when one opened in Anchorage, Alaska--I remember being surprised to discover it. I've liked the wines in the past, FWIW, but they're riper and more generous--or at least the last ones I tasted were--than I think you'd care for. Mark's suggestion of Clos du Val is a good fit for you.

Jenise thinks.....Mark's suggestion of Clos du Val is a good fit for you.

Thanks for the info Jenise. There are some half bottles here in town but wondered if they were ready to drink. I worried about the possible high tannins?

BTW off topic, how is the birding out there? Anything unusual.