Winemaker Notes
The 2017 Chimney Rock Stags Leap District Cabernet Sauvignon is a deep red with purple hues. Aromas of blackberry, cassis, mocha and hints of dried herbs exude from the bottle, as well as cardamom and a touch of mint. Rich and full-bodied, this wine has a dense mid-palate with a round and silky texture and a long finish.
Professional Ratings
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Wine Enthusiast
This is a mineral-driven estate wine, blended with 23% Merlot and 2% Petit Verdot. Iron, flint and rock glide across a powerful, rich palate that bursts in black fruit, toasted oak and dried herb.
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James Suckling
Lots of plum and coffee character on the nose and palate. Full body, round and chewy tannins and a flavorful finish. Needs a year or two to soften.
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
Blended of 75% Cabernet Sauvignon, 23% Merlot and 2% Petit Verdot, the 2017 Cabernet Sauvignon Stags Leap District is deep garnet-purple in color with scents of baked black berries, mulberries, spice cake, cedar and toast. Medium to full-bodied, it is soft-spoken and earthy with nice plush tannins and good freshness.
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.
Legend has it that quick and nimble stags would escape the indigenous hunters of southern Napa Valley through the landmark palisades that sit just northeast of the current city of Napa. As a result, the area was given the name, Stags Leap. While its grape-growing history dates back to the mid-1800s, winemaking didn’t really take off until the mid-1970s after a small but pivotal blind tasting called the Judgement of Paris.
When a 1973 Stag’s Leap Wine Cellars Cabernet Sauvignon won first place against its high-profile Bordeaux contenders, like Chateau Mouton Rothschild and Chateau Haut-Brion, international attention to the Stags Leap District of Napa Valley escalated rapidly.
The vineyards in this one-of-a-kind wine growing region receive hot afternoon air reflecting off of its eastern palisade formation. In combination with the cool evening breezes from the San Pablo Bay just south, this becomes an optimal environment for grape growing. While many varieties could thrive here, Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot dominate with virtually no others, save for a spot or two of Syrah.
Stags Leap soils—eroded volcanic and old river sediments—encourage well established root systems and result in complex, terroir-driven wines. Stags Leap District reds have a distinct sour cherry and black berry character with baking spice and dried earth aromas, and supple tannins.