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Appellation: |
Napa Valley, Spring
Mountain District |
Vineyards: |
La Perla,
Chevalier, Alba, Miravalle |
Varietals: |
Cabernet
Sauvignon 66%, Merlot 34% |
Aged: |
23 Months
in 50% New French Oak Barrels |
Production: |
5,621 Six-Pack
Cases |
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Winemaker Notes |
The result of the 2000 growing season at Spring Mountain has yielded a wine with bright fruit, spice, and a hint of mint, with an undertone of earthiness. These flavors combine with quality oak, smooth tannins, and a balanced structure to become a full-bodied wine.
The grapes were harvested by hand from mid- to late September 2000, with an average of 24.7 Brix. All the fruit was cold soaked and fermented in stainless steel tanks with native yeast. After primary fermentation the wine was drawn off and barreled down into 50% new French Oak and encouraged to complete malolactic fermentation. The wine was aged for 23 months in oak barrels and bottled in September 2002. |
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The 2000 Vintage |
| While bud break occurred at the expected time, the growing season was generally cool. Mid-season the valley experienced a brief heat spell bringing some of the highest recorded temperatures in Napa Valley history, with Calistoga registering 118°F. The average, valley-wide, was a blistering 113 – 114°F, though Spring Mountain was several degrees cooler. A couple of days of rain in September gave the grapes the extra kick to keep hanging and ripening and allowing the full natural flavors to develop on the vine. In retrospect our only disappointment with the 2000 harvest was that it was too small. |
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Spring Mountain Estate |
| Grapes from each of the four vineyard properties are considered
as we select the lots to be used in our Estate Cabernet
Sauvignon. The multitude of top quality lots with
distinctly different attributes allows us to be extremely
selective in making the final blend. The result is
a true Estate Cabernet Sauvignon that reflects the unique
growing conditions of the Spring Mountain growing district. |
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Spring Mountain Vineyard |
| Originally four individual historic Napa Valley properties, Miravalle, La Perla, Alba, and Chevalier have now been combined to create an 850 acre estate of forest and vineyard on the eastern slopes of Spring Mountain overlooking the small town of Saint Helena. Over 225 acres of the estate are planted to vine, creating 135 separate hillside vineyard blocks each with its own unique soil, exposure, and microclimate. The vineyard is planted in densities of 4,000 vines per acre and trained to the ancient gobelet form, a vertical trellising method that was invented in an earlier millennium by the Romans. |
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