The Experience
Aroma: The aroma has classic Cabernet fruits of blackberry, currant, sweet cherry, plum, and fresh red raspberry jam. The Cabernet Franc adds bright aromatic and floral notes which complement nicely the oak spice notes of vanilla, chocolate, caramel, and cedar.
The Vineyard
Nestled into a hidden canyon in the prestigious Oakville appellation, Vine Cliff Winery boasts one of the most desirable locations in the Napa Valley. The surrounding hillsides above the Silverado Trail are home to the stunning vineyards that produce the grapes for rich, full-bodied Cabernet Sauvignons. The vineyard consists of 14 individual vineyard blocks ranging from steep hillside terraces, to the flat rocky red soil of the “Oakville Bench” at 400 feet above the valley floor. Five Cabernet Sauvignon clones are planted around the estate, each one giving us a unique aroma and flavor profile to work with when assembling our blends. The Oakville appellation produces grapes and wine with incredible flavor and concentration. The 2004 growing season was virtually a textbook year. A warm spring and early bud break got the vines off to an excellent start with good vigor and even growth. Cool and even summer temperatures resulted in nice even maturity. Yields were low in 2004 with smaller cluster size and weights. Warmer temperatures in September accelerated ripening leading to an earlier harvest.
Winemaking
Gentle fruit handling, small batch fermentations, and attention to detail, describes the way we handle our grapes at Vine Cliff. Our grapes are hand picked at night or in the early morning, which allows cold fruit for processing. Individual vineyard blocks are de-stemmed separately into small stainless steel fermentation tanks. The grapes were cold soaked for two days before the must was warmed and the fermentation initiated. Smaller than usual berries, coupled with low juice to skin ratios, gave us copious flavor and tannin concentration in the must. In order to maximize the extraction of flavors and concentration of fruit, without deriving harsh tannins, we used warm fast fermentation techniques, with very short maceration time. Our final Oakville blend is 83% Cabernet Sauvignon, 11% Cabernet Franc, and 6% Petit Verdot. The final blend was aged in Chateau style French oak barrels for 19 months prior to bottling.