Nose
With aromas of cassis, pain grille and blueberry crème pie with toasted graham cracker crust, the nose explodes out of the glass.
Palate
On the palate, fruit tart and preserve notes intermingle with milk chocolate, cinnamon and brown sugar accents. Once a sip has been savored, the wine rewards you with the slowly lilting vanilla, blackberry and caramel finish. This gorgeously structured wine will cellar for more than 20 years
Growing Conditions
On a perch overlooking the Napa Valley, high above the fog line, our estate vineyard is the rocky home to our Bordeaux varieties and Chardonnay.
Varieties Grown: Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Cabernet Franc, Malbec, Petit Verdot, Chardonnay
Year Planted: 1999
Acres Planted: 72
Elevation: 1,500 to 2,100 feet
Soil: Rocky outcropping in the higher elevations; Bressa-Dibble (rocky loam) in the lower elevations
Row Orientation: Northeast to Southwest
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Bottling
It was bottled unfined and unfiltered on April 22, 2009.
Winemaking
The grape clusters were hand-sorted, and once de-stemmed, the berries were sorted again by hand on the way to tank. After four to five days of pre-fermentation cold maceration in small open-top fermentors, the fruit began 100% native yeast fermentation. Two to three weeks later, the fruit was gently pressed and moved to barrel where it finished primary and secondary fermentations.
Aging
The wine continued to age in 85% new French oak – a combination of Taransaud and St. Martin barrels – for eighteen months.
Appearance
The inky purple hue of the 2007 Pièce de Résistance focuses your attention on its beauty, while the nose and palate send the rest of your senses into blissful overdrive.
