Winemaker Notes
Blend: 76.2% Cabernet Sauvignon, 10.3% Cabernet Franc, 6.7% Merlot, 5.6% Malbec, 1.2% Petit Verdot
Professional Ratings
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James Suckling
Aromas of blackcurrant, hazelnut and chocolate, with hints of mint and sage that follow through to a medium to full body, with wonderful soft and fine tannins that give a velvety texture and persistent finish. So balanced and refined. Subtle. Didn’t include wine from vineyards in Atlas Peak this year. An excellent 2020. Drinkable, but will improve so well in the cellar.
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Wine Enthusiast
This classic-style, elegant wine is well structured for further aging and so expressive of the Napa Cabernet tradition. Aromas of blackberries, black olives and bay leaves lead to black cherries, dark chocolate and tobacco flavors that are deep and persistent without being heavy. Drink from 2028–2038.
Editors' Choice -
Decanter
2020 Lyndenhurst Produced by Spottswoodee. NV CS 13.6% // Civic Ruby colour with loads of savoury cedar spices, cinnamon and tobacco brown baking spices and red-toned fruits. Supple on entry with plump red berry fruit, tangy blood orange acidity under a bed of tobacco leaves, fragrant wild herbs, milk chocolate shavings and a kiss of anise. There is telltale crushed stone minerality, and the wine finishes long and lean with plenty of energy and drive. The tannins are burly with good grip. And the wine is generally light on its feet.
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Wine Spectator
Solidly built for the vintage, with a core of blackberry and black currant preserves that flex brambly energy and grip, along with licorice root, chaparral and apple wood notes filling in on the finish. Drink now through 2030. 2,205 cases made.
Spottswoode is an historic, family-owned estate vineyard and winery located on the western edge of St. Helena in Napa Valley. The estate was established in 1882 by George Schonewald, whose historic Victorian home is depicted on the label. Spottswoode was christened by Mrs. Albert Spotts, whose family owned the property from 1910 until its purchase in 1972 by Mary Weber Novak and her husband, Dr. Jack Novak. After Jack died unexpectedly in 1977, Mary carried out their shared dream, and Spottswoode’s debut Cabernet Sauvignon was produced in 1982, exactly one hundred years after the estate’s founding.
To ensure the highest quality, Spottswoode is dedicated to producing a handful of wines in very limited quantities: Spottswoode Estate Cabernet Sauvignon, Sauvignon Blanc, Lyndenhurst, and Field Book. The winery's goal is to produce exceptional, well-balanced, structured wines that exhibit texture, elegance, consistency and the ability to age well.
The 40-acre Spottswoode Estate Vineyard is an ideal terroir for growing wine grapes. Situated on the apex of the Sulphur Creek fan, the alluvial soils comprised primarily of sandy clay loam provide superb drainage. The gap between the Mayacamas Range and Spring Mountain admits cooling maritime breezes that temper the sun’s heat, creating an ideal microclimate for winegrowing. Among the first to introduce organic farming practices in the Napa Valley in 1985, Spottswoode is proud to have enjoyed the California Certified Organic Farmers (CCOF) certification since 1992 and Demeter Biodynamic Certification since 2020. Spottswoode is also Napa Valley’s first Certified B-Corp winery.
One of the most prestigious wines of the world capable of great power and grace, Napa Valley Cabernet is a leading force in the world of fine, famous, collectible red wine. Today the Napa Valley and Cabernet Sauvignon are so intrinsically linked that it is difficult to discuss one without the other. But it wasn’t until the 1970s that this marriage came to light; sudden international recognition rained upon Napa with the victory of the Stag’s Leap Wine Cellars 1973 Cabernet Sauvignon in the 1976 Judgement of Paris.
Cabernet Sauvignon undoubtedly dominates Napa Valley today, covering half of the land under vine, commanding the highest prices per ton and earning the most critical acclaim. Cabernet Sauvignon’s structure, acidity, capacity to thrive in multiple environs and ability to express nuances of vintage make it perfect for Napa Valley where incredible soil and geographical diversity are found and the climate is perfect for grape growing. Within the Napa Valley lie many smaller sub-AVAs that express specific characteristics based on situation, slope and soil—as a perfect example, Rutherford’s famous dust or Stags Leap District's tart cherry flavors.