Chalk Hill Estate Red (375ML half-bottle) 2007
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Product Details
Winemaker Notes
Blend 51% cabernet sauvignon; 24% malbec; 13% merlot; 11% petit verdot; 1% carmenère
Professional Ratings
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
Perhaps the finest Estate Red to date is the 2007. Its dense ruby/purple hue is followed by blackberry, cassis, cedar, and licorice characteristics, supple tannins, a more accessible personality, full body, and admirable purity, texture, and length. Drink this beauty over the next 2-3 decades.
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Wine Enthusiast
Made in the modern style, this Cabernet-based Bordeaux-style blend was aged in mostly new French oak for 20 months, so it shows plenty of toasty, oaky notes. It's softly delicious, with tiers of raspberry, cherry, red currant, milk chocolate, violet and dried herb flavors. wrapped into the smoothest possible tannins. An extrodinarily beautiful wine for drinking now and the next 4-5 years.
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Wine Spectator
Bold, rich, graceful and full-bodied, offering a wonderful beam of ripe blackberry, currant and wild berry, with touches of spice and tobacco leaf. Full-bodied, firming on the finish, where the flavors gain depth and maintain persistence. Cabernet Sauvignon, Malbec, Merlot, Petit Verdot and Carmenere. Drink now through 2017.
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Perhaps no other winery captures the casual luxury of Sonoma County better than Chalk Hill Estate. Founded nearly four decades ago, this spectacular 1300-acre property features 300 acres of vineyards, wilderness areas, winery, hospitality center, culinary garden, residence, stables, equestrian pavilion, sports fields, fishing and swimming ponds, and guest houses.
The winery's vineyards are thoughtfully woven through the native foliage and contoured to fit the intricate terrain. More than two-thirds of the Chalk Hill Estate remains uncultivated. The higher elevations offer stunning views of the Russian River Valley to the west and the Mayacamas Mountains to the east.
With hundreds of red grape varieties to choose from, winemakers have the freedom to create a virtually endless assortment of blended red wines. In many European regions, strict laws are in place determining the set of varieties that may be used, but in the New World, experimentation is permitted and encouraged resulting in a wide variety of red wine styles. Blending can be utilized to enhance balance or create complexity, lending different layers of flavors and aromas. For example, a red wine blend variety that creates a fruity and full-bodied wine would do well combined with one that is naturally high in acidity and tannins. Sometimes small amounts of a particular variety are added to boost color or aromatics. Blending can take place before or after fermentation, with the latter, more popular option giving more control to the winemaker over the final qualities of the wine.
How to Serve Red Wine
A common piece of advice is to serve red wine at “room temperature,” but this suggestion is imprecise. After all, room temperature in January is likely to be quite different than in August, even considering the possible effect of central heating and air conditioning systems. The proper temperature to aim for is 55° F to 60° F for lighter-bodied reds and 60° F to 65° F for fuller-bodied wines.
How Long Does Red Wine Last?
Once opened and re-corked, a bottle stored in a cool, dark environment (like your fridge) will stay fresh and nicely drinkable for a day or two. There are products available that can extend that period by a couple of days. As for unopened bottles, optimal storage means keeping them on their sides in a moderately humid environment at about 57° F. Red wines stored in this manner will stay good – and possibly improve – for anywhere from one year to multiple decades. Assessing how long to hold on to a bottle is a complicated science. If you are planning long-term storage of your reds, seek the advice of a wine professional.
Home to a diverse array of smaller AVAs with varied microclimates and soil types, Sonoma County has something for every wine lover. Physically twice as large as Napa Valley, the region only produces about half the amount of wine but boasts both tremendous quality and variety. With its laid-back atmosphere and down-to-earth attitude, the wineries of Sonoma are appreciated by wine tourists for their friendliness and approachability. The entire county intends to become a 100% sustainable winegrowing region by 2019.
Sonoma County wines are produced with carefully selected grape varieties to reflect the best attributes of their sites—Dry Creek Valley’s consistent sunshine is ideal for Zinfandel, while the warm Alexander Valley is responsible for rich, voluptuous red wines like Cabernet Sauvignon. Chardonnay and Pinot Noir are important throughout the county, most notably in the cooler AVAs of Russian River, Sonoma Coast and Carneros. Sauvignon Blanc, Merlot and Syrah have also found a firm footing here.