Cliff Lede High Fidelity 2012 Front Label
Cliff Lede High Fidelity 2012 Front Label

Winemaker Notes

The 2012 High Fidelity blend is built on the silky suppleness of Merlot, with Cabernet Franc, Cabernet Sauvignon, and Malbec adding structure, complexity, and richness. This full-bodied wine exhibits all of the seductive opulence of the vintage. Black cherry, anise, white chocolate, and Madagascar vanilla greet the senses in this generous bouquet. This opulent wine has intriguing hints of ferric and graphite minerality andexotic spice. Concentrated and rich, with polished tannins that create a lengthy and harmonious finish, this wine is an ode to the great wines of Pomerol and St. Emilion.

Blend: 64% Merlot, 21% Cabernet Franc, 9% Cabernet Sauvignon, 6% Malbec

Professional Ratings

  • 96
    The 2012 Proprietary Red Blend High Fidelity is a blend of 64% Merlot, 21% Cabernet Franc, 9% Cabernet Sauvignon and 6% Malbec. Its dense ruby/purple color is followed by notes of white chocolate and cassis as well as a fleshy, full-bodied mouthfeel, abundant complexity, stunning purity and overall harmony. This brilliant red can be drunk over the next 10-15 years.
Cliff Lede Vineyards

Cliff Lede Vineyards

View all products
Image for  content section
View all products
Image for Napa Valley Red Wine content section
View all products

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.

DOY341335_2012 Item# 341335