2019 Cabernet Sauvignon, Steffensen Vineyard, Coombsville

The 2019 Vintage:  The 2019 vintage had a moderate weather growing season with a late bud break with veraison not ending until early August in some areas of the valley. Autumn brought hot days and cool nights which helped push the grapes to full ripening, while preserving their acidity. As a result, the wines produced from this vintage are rich, full and robust in flavor with deep rich color.

Winemaking:  The grapes were hand-harvested in early October in the  early morning when temperatures often dip to 50˚F – to capture vibrant acidity and fruit expression in the wine. They were destemmed into small one ton open top bins while keeping the grapes cold by cold-soaking them for 4 days for gentle extraction of color and then fermented. During fermentation the grapes were carefully hand-punched down a couple times a day to develop a deep color, rich varietal characteristic and fine tannins. Once fermentation was complete and the wine was dry, the wine was pressed to barrels.  Each barrel was hand racked three times and bottled with techniques that ensure maximum protection for aging cellar-worthy collector caliber wines.

Tasting notes:  The 2019 vintage is one of a long-standing vertical series of vintages produced from the noted Steffensen Vineyard in the Coombsville AVA. This vineyard produces powerful and expressive limited yield fruit of the highest quality making it worthy of the single vineyard collection. Black plum, blueberry and hints of deep dark chocolate give way to a juicy, rich and dense explosion of flavors that linger. This medium to full-bodied wine with firm tannin softens as it ages.  A classic Bordeaux-styled collector’s Napa Cabernet.

SF Chronicle Wine Competition - Gold Medal

  -  93 Points  

JebDunnuck – 91 Points