Winemaker Notes
Each year, our iconic Old Sparky Cabernet is handcrafted from the finest barrel lots in our cellar. True to the vintage, the 2010 blend shows prodigious intensity, spectacular structure and impeccable balance that are present from start to lingering finish. There are volumes of dark red and black fruit woven with elegant threads of dark berries, currants, mocha and subtle cedar. The most compelling aspect of Old Sparky is the wine's ability to seamlessly partner great power and intensity with elegance and finesse — the proverbial, "iron fist in a velvet glove."
Professional Ratings
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
The 2010 Cabernet Sauvignon Beckstoffer To Kalon Vineyard Old Sparky, made from clone 4, 6 and 337, displays a dense opaque purple color as well as an incredible nose of graphite, cedarwood, incense, licorice, Christmas fruitcake, vanillin and abundant blackberry and black currant liqueur. Gorgeously rich and textured with a nearly endless finish, this super intense, full throttle wine needs 5-7 years of bottle age and should drink well over the following 25-30 years. It was aged 20 months in 100% new oak barrels.
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Wine Spectator
Impeccably balanced, with powerful currant, dark berry, mocha, floral and cedar notes, this wine begs for cellaring, and has only begun to reveal its depth and dimensions. Ends with chewy, gripping, ripe, flavorful tannins.
A noble variety bestowed with both power and concentration, Cabernet Sauvignon enjoys success all over the globe, its best examples showing potential to age beautifully for decades. Cabernet Sauvignon flourishes in Bordeaux's Medoc where it is often blended with Merlot and smaller amounts of some combination of Cabernet Franc, Malbecand Petit Verdot. In the Napa Valley, ‘Cab’ is responsible for some of the world’s most prestigious, age-worthy and sought-after “cult” wines. Somm Secret—DNA profiling in 1997 revealed that Cabernet Sauvignon was born from a spontaneous crossing of Cabernet Franc and Sauvignon Blanc in 17th century southwest France.
Home to some of the most sought-after Cabernet Sauvignon in America, Napa Valley’s Oakville district stretches across the center of Napa's valley floor and foothills between the Vaca and Mayacamas Mountains. This AVA is home to the legendary To Kalon Vineyard and Martha's Vineyard, as well as many powerhouse wineries including Screaming Eagle, Silver Oak, Robert Mondavi, Opus One, Far Niente and Groth.
The climate is generally warm and agreeable, resulting in year after year of favorable vintages. Summer days see a gentle tug of war between warmer inland air and the cool air coming in from the San Pablo Bay, creating an ideal environment to grow red varieties. Oakville's diverse soils, namely ancient sea bedrock, clay and gravel, are well-drained, and perfect for high-caliber viticulture.
Cabernet here is often bottled varietally but is also popular in Bordeaux Blends. Oakville wines are known for their silky, sensual textures, structured tannins, dark and brooding fruit and lovely aromatics. These age-worthy and prestigious wines are favored by collectors throughout the world.