Tasting notes
Ruby red in color, this Cabernet Sauvignon features a unique bouquet and flavors of ripe black currant, pomegranate, baking spice, and subtle minerality. Warmer nuances of toasted marshmallow, vanilla, and meringue combine to create a solid backbone with a dense core, sumptuous mouthfeel, and firm, fine tannins. This wine can be enjoyed now or cellared for years to come.
Technical information
Appellation
Napa Valley
Alcohol
14.9%
Winemaking
Fruit from Petersen Ranch was hand-harvested in mid-October and optically sorted, selecting only the highest quality fruit for fermentation in a combination of concrete and stainless vessels. Fruit was allowed to ferment for up to 15 days with regular pump-overs to extract deep color and rich flavors. The wine was then gently pressed, racked, and aged for 30 months in small oak barrels 60(% new) from a variety of French, American and Hungarian coopers to add complexity prior to bottling. The toast level on the barrels enhances the structure of the wine and balances the fruit’s inherent ripeness. After aging, barrels were individually tasted and those that best expressed the unique sense of place were selected and bottled.
Vintage
The 2019 vintage is the first single-vineyard wine produced from this heritage location and showcases the stellar fruit of Petersen Ranch. Ample winter rains provided welcome saturation for the soils, followed by a cool Spring which delayed flowering and fruit set. The long, warm summer saw very few extreme heat events, with foggy mornings setting the stage for vibrant and expressive wines. Continued mild temperatures extended the growing season, preserving freshness and finesse in the wines while teasing out beautiful color, silkiness, and balance in the Cabernet Sauvignon.
Vineyard
Petersen Ranch expresses the essence of Napa Valley’s Diamond Mountain District. Southwest of the town of Calistoga, Petersen Ranch rises from 700 to 900 feet above the valley floor. The complex aspects of the terraced mountainsides create microclimates within the vineyard. The Cabernet Sauvignon planted here develops concentrated varietal expression in the well-drained, deep, rich loam of this vineyard’s 60 planted acres. This vineyard, set in a high altitude with a significant diurnal range and rare volcanic glass soil, produces wines of remarkable intensity and finesse, offering a weight and richness that unfolds into complex layers of aroma and flavor.