The vineyard manager is Michael Wolff, who also works with Arajo, Bextoffer, and Scarecrow. The winemaker is Ms. Francois Pétion, who worked at Arajo for 14 years. After 10 months of aging in French barrels, the wine is blended and aged for another 12 months (total of about 2 years). The concentrated purple color raises expectations, and while it has ripe crème de cassis, licorice, and graphite, it is full-bodied, but also has lively fruit freshness, silky and well-melted tannins, excellent acidity, and a fragrant nuance from the barrel.
Vintage Information
2019 continued the tradition of being a fantastic vintage, with excellent consistency and producing wines of tremendous depth and complexity.
The growing season began with light rain in the spring and gradually warmed, with just the right amount of rainfall resulting in relatively small, high quality fruit. Mild temperatures in August and September ensured a long growing season, allowing for sufficient maturity and pinpointed harvest dates for each block.
Technical information
Harvest period: September 20th to October 7th. The grapes from blocks 1, 3, 4, and 6 perfectly express the characteristics of each block.
Winemaking: After rigorous selection, the wine is fermented and aged in French barrels for approximately 10 months before being blended.
It will be returned to the barrel for a further 12 months of aging (total of approximately 2 years of barrel aging), bottled in mid-2021, and released in the fall of 2022 after approximately one year of bottle aging.
Tasting Comments
The 2019 vintage has layered aromas of black berries, spices, menthol, licorice and dried flowers, a supple mouthfeel, rich, ripe fruit, lively acidity and powerful, finely grained tannins.
It has a characteristic depth and richness, with the characteristics of each block perfectly harmonized, resulting in a well-balanced, persistent and long finish that is very impressive.
A wonderful finish that fully demonstrates the characteristics of Napa Valley/Oakville.
Field Information
Vine Hill Ranch field and plot map
2019 Use Area
The 2019 harvest began on September 20th with Block 3, followed by Block 1, Block 4 and finishing on October 7th with Block 6.
Block 3: Benchland, a gently sloping area (yield: 3.8 tons/acre)
Block 1: Hilly area connected to Mayacamas Mountain (yield: 4 tons/acre)
Block 4: Benchland (yield: 2.8 tonnes/acre)
Block 6: Hilly areas historically proven to produce the highest quality wines (yield: 4.2 tonnes/acre)
*The average yield of Cabernet Sauvignon in Napa Valley is said to be 10 tons per acre, so the yield at Vine Hill Ranch Estate is very low, and concentrated fruit is used that is subject to sufficient yield restriction.
Vintage: 2019
Capacity: 750ml
Type: Red wine
Taste: Full-bodied
Main variety: 100% Cabernet Sauvignon
Country of Origin: America
Region Name: California
AVA: Napa Valley
Nested AVA, Other: Oakville
Vineyard: Vine Hill Ranch
Notes: Vinous 98+ points Oct., 2021 by Antonio Galloni
Winemaker: Francoise Peschon
Aging: Aged for approximately 24 months in French barrels
Rating: 90P or above
Cap: Cork
Alcohol content: 14.8%