Winemaker Notes
The Bavarian Lion Vineyard always showcases vibrant blue/black fruits with a tannin profile that is silky and smooth, yet firm in its youth. Knowing this about the vineyard it is important to showcase the fruit with tannins in proportion to the other flavor components. Choices such as fermentation temperature, pump over timing and intensity, yeast choice, cooperage and toast level, lees stirring and malolactic management all play critical roles in balancing this incredible fruit from one of the warmest and most eastern AVAs in all of Sonoma County.
Professional Ratings
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
A barrel sample, the deep garnet-purple colored 2015 Cabernet Sauvignon Bavarian Lion Vineyard offers up crème de cassis, baked cherries, menthol and cigar boxes with a waft of dried herbs and dusty earth. The full-bodied palate is rich with firm, chewy tannins, dried berries and spice cake notions, finishing long with some earthy notes coming through.
Barrel Sample: 90-92
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Wine Spectator
This is in the ultraripe style, with creamed plum, cassis and cherry puree flavors, coated with milk chocolate details and ending with strong echoes of linzer torte and licorice snap. The fruit is heady, but this manages to maintain a sense of form nonetheless. For fans of the style only.
Adobe Road Winery produces small lot wines from premier family-owned vineyards across Sonoma County and Napa Valley. Through collaboration and meticulous attention to detail, our handcrafted wines reflect the unique characteristics of each vineyard site in which they are grown.
Owners Kevin and Debra Buckler founded the winery in 2002, with a unique tie to the world of professional motorsports. As a championship race car driver, Kevin's passion and drive earned him over 100 professional racing victories. With that same passion and drive, Kevin is now dedicated to crafting exceptional wines that represent the pinnacle of quality from the most esteemed vineyards in Sonoma and Napa.
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.
A small and picturesque valley separating Napa Valley on its south border and Alexander Valley to its north, Knights Valley excels in similar varieties as the two aforementioned appellations, namely red Bordeaux varieties and blends, as well as Sauvignon blanc. Originally established by Beringer Vineyards, today several outstanding producers claim acreage here. The circadian cooling effects of the nearby Pacific Ocean create a nighttime respite for vineyards during the hot growing season.