Winemaker Notes
Blend: 62% Merlot, 37% Cabernet Sauvignon, 1% Petit Verdot
Professional Ratings
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
Close to perfection is the 2013 Reserve Claret, a blend of 62% Merlot, 37% Cabernet Sauvignon and 1% Petit Verdot, aged 22 months in 20% new French oak. There are 450 cases of this big boy (14.8% alcohol). This is a 30-year wine and a spectacular effort, with 14% coming from the Napa side of the property and 86% from the Sonoma County side. Dense opaque purple, with a glorious nose of chocolate, and espresso intermixed with mulberry fruit, blueberry and blackberry, it is fleshy, succulent, full-bodied, opulent and impressively structured. In fact, the 2013 tannic profile is alive in this wine, and thus I suggest 3-5 years of bottle age. Drink it over the following three decades.
One of the world’s most classic and popular styles of red wine, Bordeaux-inspired blends have spread from their homeland in France to nearly every corner of the New World. Typically based on either Cabernet Sauvignon or Merlot and supported by Cabernet Franc, Malbec and Petit Verdot, the best of these are densely hued, fragrant, full of fruit and boast a structure that begs for cellar time. Somm Secret—Blends from Bordeaux are generally earthier compared to those from the New World, which tend to be fruit-dominant.
Reaching up California's coastline and into its valleys north of San Francisco, the North Coast AVA includes six counties: Marin, Solano, Napa, Sonoma, Mendocino and Lake. While Napa and Sonoma enjoy most of the glory, the rest produce no shortage of quality wines in an intriguing and diverse range of styles.
Climbing up the state's rugged coastline, the chilly Marin County, just above the City and most of Sonoma County, as well as Mendocino County on the far north end of the North Coast successfully grow cool-climate varieties like Pinot Noir, Chardonnay and in some spots, Riesling. Inland Lake County, on the other hand, is considerably warmer, and Cabernet Sauvignon, Zinfandel and Sauvignon Blanc produce some impressive wines with affordable price tags.