Winemaker Notes
Professional Ratings
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Wine Enthusiast
Vivid aromas of tart cherry and cranberry are followed by equally vivid, crisp and tangy flavors that echo the cherry and cranberry but add richer plum notes and nuances of cinnamon, nutmeg and cedar. This is so well balanced and bright that it tastes lip-smacking delicious now but will improve with age through at least 2020. Cellar Selection.
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Wine & Spirits
Sourced from three vineyards ranging from 600 to 1,000 feet of elevation, this is an ambitious Livermore wine, one that feels balanced without overreaching. Its floral, currant-scented fruit has a silky verve; its savory aromas of tobacco and herb are subtle and appetizing. Neither particularly heavy nor tannic, this is a cabernet suited to lamb rather than steak.
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.
A warm sub-appellation of the greater San Francisco Bay AVA (American Viticultural Area), Livermore Valley mainly hides behind the shielding effects of the bay’s eastern hills. However, late afternoon winds cool down summer nights as daytime heat rises from the Central Valley in the east, pulling the cold, foggy, bay air inland. This cooler evening air permeates the Livermore Valley's foothills, making this an ideal environment for the development of phenolic ripeness and concentration in its wine grapes.
The Livermore Valley is one of California's oldest wine regions and has played a crucial role in shaping California's wine industry. Spanish missionaries planted the first wine grapes in the Livermore Valley in the 1760s. Then in the mid 1800s, a man named Robert Livermore planted the area’s first commercial vineyards. Winemaker pioneer C. H. Wente arrived a few years later; today the Wente Chardonnay clone is the source of a majority of California Chardonnay. Furthermore, James Concannon and the Wetmore brothers recognized the virtues of the area’s Bordeaux-like gravel soils and dedicated themselves to making high quality wine from Bordeaux varieties. Today the area is also known for high quality Petite Sirah.