Winemaker Notes
Professional Ratings
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Jeb Dunnuck
I also loved the 2014 Asterisk, which shows the complex, balanced, elegant style of this vintage perfectly. Giving up full-bodied notes of tobacco leaf, forest floor, fruitcake, and loads of cassis fruits, it’s deep, flawlessly balanced, and has ripe, polished tannins that emerge on the finish. The balance and purity here are remarkable. and while it offers incredible pleasure today, it’s going to evolve for 20-25 years.
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
Medium to deep garnet-purple colored, the 2014 Asterisk is a little closed to begin, slowly revealing blackberry pie, baked blackcurrants and mulberries on the nose with nuances of redcurrant jelly, tobacco and lavender with hints of underbrush and pencil lead. Full-bodied and with a rock-solid backbone of very firm, wonderfully ripe, grainy tannins, the palate has oodles of freshness and impressive depth, finishing long and minerally.
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.