Mt. Brave Cabernet Sauvignon 2011
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Blend: 94% Cabernet Sauvignon, 3% Merlot, 3% Cabernet Franc
Professional Ratings
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Vinous
The 2011 Mt. Brave Cabernet Sauvignon is positively brilliant. Deep, dense and voluptuous, with no hard edges, the 2011 possesses terrific balance and tons of class. Black cherry, gravel, plum, spice, licorice, menthol and chocolate build in a Cabernet endowed with remarkable depth. There are no hard edges or awkward contours in this beauty from Mt. Brave and Chris Carpenter.
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
Absolutely stunning, the 2011 Cabernet Sauvignon Mt. Veeder is a beauty. Notes of charcoal, blueberry liqueur, black currants, licorice, incense and violets jump from the glass of this 93.5% Cabernet Sauvignon, 3.5% Merlot and 3% Cabernet Franc blend that was aged in 91% new French oak. This full-bodied 2011 is a tremendous success for the vintage, again reflecting that mountain sites often did very well, and taste like a completely different vintage than the valley floor 2011s. This savory, fleshy wine has low acidity and ripe tannin, so it can be drunk now or cellared for a decade or more.
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James Suckling
There is a purity of fruit here with blackberry, blueberry and licorice character. Full body with firm tannins and fresh, lively finish. Exceptional for 2011. Big surprise.
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Wine & Spirits
Chris Carpenter makes this wine at a Jackson family vineyard above the fog line in northern Mt. Veeder, a remote spot that was one of Jess Jackson's favorite places in his stable of mountain sites. The vineyard produced a delicious 2011 cabernet, a cool, black wine that shows none of the damp challenges of the vintages. Scents of anise meet crucnchy dark red fruit in a lush and approachable wine, its tannins forming fine layers of chocolate in the spaces between the fruit. It's approachable now and suited to several years of cellaring.
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Wine Enthusiast
From high-elevation vineyards, this is a lean, dusty wine driven by dried herb, blueberry and savory tobacco, with a floral flirtation on the bouquet. Integrated tannins are still sizable and structured, the midpalate touched by a gamy, meaty suggestion akin to charcuterie.
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Decanter
Powerhouse of a wine: bold, brash and full-on with dense, inky dried fruit. The palate has notes of almonds with a bit of oiliness and great weight and length.
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Mt. Brave is a tribute to the pioneering spirit of those who settled the rugged terrain of Mt. Veeder during the 1800s and an homage to the Wappo Indians, "the brave ones," who were the original inhabitants of this extraordinary place. The Mt. Brave Vineyard, once the Chateau Potelle Vineyard, was established decades ago at elevations ranging from 1,400 to 1,800 feet. While Mt. Veeder is cool, Mt. Brave sits above the fog line, with morning sun warming the grapes each day. Soils are a sparse, gravelly loam. Nutrients and minerals are scant, resulting in tiny berries with concentrated and complex flavors. At harvest, small lug boxes must be carefully moved up and down the steep slopes to protect both vines and vineyard workers.
A noble variety bestowed with both power and concentration, Cabernet Sauvignon enjoys success all over the globe, its best examples showing potential to age beautifully for decades. Cabernet Sauvignon flourishes in Bordeaux's Medoc where it is often blended with Merlot and smaller amounts of some combination of Cabernet Franc, Malbecand Petit Verdot. In the Napa Valley, ‘Cab’ is responsible for some of the world’s most prestigious, age-worthy and sought-after “cult” wines. Somm Secret—DNA profiling in 1997 revealed that Cabernet Sauvignon was born from a spontaneous crossing of Cabernet Franc and Sauvignon Blanc in 17th century southwest France.
Centered at the peak for which it is named, Mount Veeder is Napa’s largest sub-AVA. But even though the entire appellation spreads over 16,000 acres, vineyards cover a mere 1,000. Scattered among Douglas firs and bristlecone pines, Mount Veeder vineyards extend south from the upper elevations of the Mayacamas Mountains—the highest point at 2,400 feet—to the border of the Carneros region. Less than 25 wineries produce wine from Mount Veeder fruit.
Winemaking began early in this appellation. In 1864, Captain Stelham Wing presented the first Mount Veeder wine to the Napa County Fair; it came from today’s Wing Canyon Vineyard. Prohibition, of course, halted winemaking and viticulture wasn’t revitalized until the founding of Mayacamas Vineyards in 1951 and Bernstein Vineyards in 1964.
The Bernstein Vineyards was actually home to the first Petit Verdot in California, planted in 1975. Today most of the Petit Verdot in Napa Valley originates from this vineyard.
Rocky volcanic clay and ancient seabed matter dominate Mount Veeder soils—perfect for Bordeaux varieties. Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Malbec, Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot enjoy spectacular success. These varieties produce wines rich in brambly blackberry and black cherry fruit with herbal and floral aromatics. Structures are moderate to assertive and wines have great staying power.
Chardonnay from Mount Veeder is lush, full and balanced mineral and fresh citrus flavors.