Winemaker Notes
Professional Ratings
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
The 2003 Old Gravelly is a blend of 48% Cabernet Sauvignon, 32% Cabernet Franc, 19% Merlot and 1% Petit Verdot. A profound wine, it boasts notions of blueberries, black raspberries, wet rocks and spring flowers in its full-bodied, opulently textured, rich, stunningly complex personality. This irresistible 2003 appears to be on a faster evolutionary track than the Dr. Crane Cuvee, but that’s a difficult call. This wine was showing so much complexity, richness and intensity that I found it a show stopper in the middle of this impressive flight of wines from Behrens. Drink this beauty over the next 10-15 years.
Undoubtedly proving its merit over and over, Napa Valley is a now a leading force in the world of prestigious red wine regions. Though Cabernet Sauvignon dominates Napa Valley, other red varieties certainly thrive here. Important but often overlooked include Merlot and other Bordeaux varieties well-regarded on their own as well as for their blending capacities. Very old vine Zinfandel represents an important historical stronghold for the region and Pinot noir is produced in the cooler southern parts, close to the San Pablo Bay.
Perfectly situated running north to south, the valley acts as a corridor, pulling cool, moist air up from the San Pablo Bay in the evenings during the hot days of the growing season, which leads to even and slow grape ripening. Furthermore the valley claims over 100 soil variations including layers of volcanic, gravel, sand and silt—a combination excellent for world-class red wine production.