Winemaker Notes
This is a 40-acre vineyard at the base of Mt. St. Helena, northeast of Calistoga. Very steeply terraced, it was planted in 1990 and 1993. The soil is a shallow clay-loam atop white volcanic ash, which provides excellent drainage and limits yields to between 1.4 and 2.7 tons per acre.
Professional Ratings
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
The 2003 Jericho Canyon, from a 40-acre parcel of vines at the base of Mount St. Helena, is a blend of 87% Cabernet Sauvignon, 10% Merlot, and 3% Cabernet Franc. This is David Ramey’s homage to Pauillac. With a big sweet nose of white chocolate, creme de cassis, cedar, spice box, and high-quality smoky oak, it is full-bodied, rich, and tannic with notes of chocolate and espresso in the mouth.
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.