2011 Cabernet Sauvignon

Vineyard: Located at the northern terminus of the Alexander Valley, Cloverdale Ranch is home to Block 21, a three-acre parcel and the namesake of our Cabernet Sauvignon. The ranch is 135 total planted acres sitting between the eastern bank of the Russian River and the western slopes of the Mayacamas mountains. With some of the warmest temperatures in the area, the grapes growing here easily reach full maturity, lending to wines with immense concentration and complexity. The soils are a mix of gravel deposits left by the Russian River and alluvial fans formed by centuries of erosion and runoff from the Mayacamas. 

 

38°48'18.8"N 122°59'28.7"W

 

Vintage: The 2011 vintage was a relatively cool one. It was a year for complexity and structure. Our block 21 Cabernet is a single vineyard selection from the Trione Cloverdale Ranch, located on the western flank of the Mayacamas Mountains, in the northern portion of the Alexander Valley. The vines, planted in 2001 with the Bordeaux clone 337, grow in clay and sandy loam soils underlain with a high percentage of gravel. Cabernet Sauvignon grown in this ideal terroir develops deep, concentrated flavors and fine, smooth tannins. 

 

Winemaking: This Cabernet was made using a unique cap irrigation device that brings in oxygen as the free-run wine is being circulated over the cap during the peak of fermentation. This technique ensures the complexing of tannins with the color compounds found in the grapes as well as maximizing proper yeast cell health and viability. After fermentation, the wine stayed in contact with the cap for 5 weeks undergoing a process called extended maceration. Extended maceration “softens” the tannins in the wine and builds mouth feel. 

 

Oak: 100% French | Aging: 24 months