Winemaker Notes
The 2019 vintage of the Macauley Petite Sirah was most noteworthy for its wonderfully moderate summer temperatures and its steady sunshine. This wine hails from the revered Kenefick Ranch in Calistoga at the foot of the Palisades Mountains in Napa Valley. It is a magical setting, with soils consisting of volcanic ash, flecks of shale, obsidian glass, gravels of many colors and even some ancient river valley silt. It’s quite complex in composition and provides for a wine that interprets every nuance of this fabled terroir. Notes of plum, herbal tar, coffee and black cherry meet an exciting mouthfeel of fresh black plums, tart red fruits, barrel toffee and even a touch of espresso. It will have you waxing poetic with every sip. Aged in 60% new French oak for 22 months and bottled unfined and unfiltered.
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.