2018
Hamel family ranch
This single-vineyard expression is from the 120-acre property that contains the winery, cave and the Estate house. It lies at the foot of the Mayacamas Mountains in the Sonoma Valley. The warmest site across our estate vineyards, its eponymous Cabernet Sauvignon blends supple tannins with incisive minerality to deliver a wine with classic and powerful poise.
Profile
Swirling a dark ruby in the glass, a bouquet emerges with aromas of dark cherry, plum, sage, and violets with a deep sanguine tone underlying the fruit. The wine is textured with finely etched tannins that layer around a vibrant freshness and a tightly coiled mineral core. Expressive and deep, the palate shows an elegant lift and verticality that extends through a lasting, chalky finish. This wine can be opened and enjoyed in the near term and will continue to gain complexity in the cellar over the next ten years.
Vintage Notes and Technical Details
The 2018 winter was warmer and drier than average with only eight inches of rain. Fortunately, that pattern was reversed in March and April with an additional eight inches, normalizing vine vigor. Though spring and summer were the coolest we have seen in six years, the seasons aligned with average temperatures from the past twenty years. Continuing our transition to dry farming, we farmed 75% of our vineyards without a single irrigation. The gentle accumulation of heat through the summer led to an extended season, allowing the grapes to fully ripen with lots of phenolic complexity and maturation. Harvest began on August 30th and was completed on October 17th. Aside from rain showers at the beginning of October, the benevolent fall weather pattern allowed us to pick at optimal ripeness, yielding wines of elegant and precocious potential.
- Blend: 87% Cabernet Sauvignon, 13% Cabernet Franc
- Production: 1,300 Cases
- Appellation: Sonoma Valley
- Vineyard: 100% Hamel Family Ranch
- Fermentation: 66% Concrete Tanks, 25% Stainless Steel Tanks, 9% Oak Tanks
- Aging: 20 Months, 46% New French Oak Barrels, 54% Neutral French Oak Barrels
- Bottling Date: July 17, 2020
- Harvest Dates: September 22 – October 8, 2018
- Alcohol: 14.5%
Explore Our Vineyards
To capture the complexity of our vineyards’ volcanic terroir, we embrace a level of precision, scale and knowledge that reflects the geologic contours of our place.