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Our estate vineyards planted in 1990 on the Napa Valley hillsides east of the Silverado Trail provided the grapes. A
variety of exposures increased the wines complexity. Western slopes: Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot. Eastern slopes:
Cabernet Franc and a second Cabernet Sauvignon vineyard.
Crop level and vine growth were closely monitored to
achieve balance and intensify fruit character. The vineyards are densely planted (1,240 vines per acre) and vertically
trellised. The rocky soil with moderate amount of clay averaging three feet in depth provides excellent drainage.
Tasting Notes
The nose opens with layers of tobacco,
leather, mocha, and licorice. Lush fl avors of cherry and
blackberry are complimented by a lengthy fi nish. The firm
tannic structure will allow the wine to improve and age over
the next 15 years.
Winemaking Notes
Our Estate program follows
traditional French winemaking practices. Techniques
include the use of extended maceration (each lot averaged
25 days on the grape skins) and frequent pumping-over two
times a day. The 2010 vintage aged for 16 months in 45%
new Troncais, Nevers, and Alliers Oak (thin-staved, medium
& medium-plus toast Chateau Ferre barrels). Tonnelleries:
Seguin Moreau, Radoux, Demptos, and Taransaud. Barrels
were topped monthly and racked every 6 months. To
preserve fruit intensity and body, the wine was not fi ltered
prior to bottling.
Harvest Report
A wet winter after the three previous dry years pushed bud break, fl owering
and fruit-set back by three weeks. Luckily, due to a lot of cloud cover, we had very little frost alerts
and no frost damage. Early summer brought cooler than normal temperatures, so we had a
slightly later than average veraison. Towards the end of August, we were suddenly faced with a
triple digit heat spike, but good canopy management kept damage to a minimum. The 2010
vintage looks to be smaller than past, but with excellent fruit quality.
