2019 Winemaker Series Cabernet Sauvignon Lot 2

ABOUT WINEMAKER SERIES

Crafted especially for our wine club members, the Winemaker Series allows us to select interesting lots and to create unique blends. This is like taking a walk through the vineyard, experiencing the unique characteristics that define Stag’s Leap Wine Cellars’ world-class vineyards. These wines often spend more time in barrel and offer a great juxtaposition to our classic Stag’s Leap Wine Cellars offerings.

VINEYARDS & WINEMAKING

The 2019 Winemaker Series, Lot #2 Cabernet Sauvignon is 100% Cabernet Sauvignon, primarily from Battuello (69%), Surber (18%), and Twin Creeks (9%).  The wine was aged 21 months in 100% new French oak barrels and bottled without filtration.

VINTAGE

Spring in Napa Valley was wet with significant rain that increased canopy growth and caused some shatter during bloom in the vineyards. Our vineyard team worked diligently to balance canopies and fruit load, and to expose the fruit to the sun at the right time. Following this wet and cool start to the year that resulted in a lot of vigor, the summer gave way to near ideal growing conditions. Like 2018, a long growing season allowed for grapes to reach optimal ripeness. Yields were less than 2018 and harvest was later than usual.  The main challenge this harvest was powering wineries with generators, as the power company shut off electricity to mitigate any potential fires due to high winds. Fires in upper Sonoma did not affect northern Napa Valley vineyards, and winds kept smoke out of the valley. Overall quality is quite high, and Cabernet has beautiful dark fruit aromas, nice complexity, and more richness than 2018.

TASTING NOTES

This Cabernet Sauvignon offers vibrant aromas of blackberry, black cherry, black olive and spice. The wine is rich and silky on the palate with youthful flavors of dark fruit and black berry. Enjoy with grilled New York steak, herb-crusted pork roast, or grilled Portobello mushrooms tossed in olive oil with fresh rosemary.