Winemaker Notes
-Wine Enthusiast
Rubicon is the pure reflection of what was once the historic Inglenook property located in the heart of the western Rutherford Bench, Napa Valley s prime Cabernet Sauvignon appellation. In 1975, Francis and Eleanor Coppola purchased a majority of this historic Estate and introduced the Niebaum-Coppola Estate Winery. After three years of careful study and planning, they launched an ambitious venture to revitalize the great Cabernet heritage of Inglenook. In 1978, the new winery created its first vintage of Rubicon, a proprietary Bordeaux-style blend that would become the flagship wine of the Niebaum-Coppola Estate. Produced from 100% certified organically-farmed grapes, Rubicon always reflects its terroir first, vintage second.
Professional Ratings
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Wine Enthusiast
Fragrant, showing cascades of violets, caramelized new oak, sweet cherry pie, cocoa and cassis aromas. In the mouth, it’s unctuous, and floods the palate with sweet, savory flavors. Has a youthful jamminess right now, which will melt off and refine as time goes by. Such is the elegance and balance that cellaring it for 20 years will be no problem. This is the best Rubicon ever.
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Wine & Spirits
Perhaps the best vintage of Rubicon to date, this wine grows at one of the best cabernet sauvignon sites in Napa Valley, on the Rutherford benchlands first planted by William C. Watson in 1871, before 19th-century shipping magnate Gustav Neibaum selected the land for his own ambitious estate. Now it belongs to Francis Ford Coppola, who spent the last 30 years reassembling what is now a 1,700-acre property. Winemaker Scott McLeod uses heavily toasted French oak the way he would if he were making a first growth in Bordeaux, and here the fruit lives up to the barrels. The wine has an internal energy; it feels bursting with life, in bloom. The dark fruit is at once luscious and beautifully formed, the flavor lasting for minutes. A genuine expression of place.
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.