Premier Cabernet Collection Wines
2007 Cabernet Sauvignon – Ghielmetti Vineyard, Clone 4, which will be released in March 2010, is the second vintage from this block to be accorded our highest-quality Cabernet Classification—Premier Cabernet Collection. This powerhouse wine emphasizes aromatic notes of semi-sweet chocolate, graphite, mocha, cassis, and black cherry liqueur. On entry, rich and viscous flavors of dark fruit and chocolate unfurl broad tannins from the mid-palate through the long finish. Fewer than 400 three-packs of this wine were produced in this vintage. The wine will be at its peak from 2014-2020. The previous vintage sold out on release last year; this wine can be ordered starting in September. To be notified of the next release, please sign up for our Interest List.
Release Date: March 2010
Release Price: $300/three pack
Replete with the aromas of burnished oak, black cherry, tar, graphite, and cassis the 2007 Cabernet Sauvignon – Ghielmetti Vineyard, Clone 30 is the second of two Premier Cabernet Collection releases in 2010. Marrying elegance with significant tannin this release, in which only four barrels were accorded the highest-quality Cabernet Classification, reveals a broad, open wine with great aging potential. On entry, the wine unfolds its dark cherry and cassis-fruit elements that lead to a mid-palate that circumscribes that fruit with fine-grained tannins and great acidity. Less opulent but more ageworthy than the Cabernet Sauvignon – Ghielmetti Vineyard, Clone 4, this offering will be at its peak from 2014-2022. Fewer than 400 three-packs of this wine were produced in this vintage. The previous vintage sold out on release last year; this wine can be ordered starting in September. To guarantee yourself an allocation, please sign up for our Interest List.
Release Date: September 2010
Release Price: $300/three pack
2006 Cabernet Sauvignon - Ghielmetti Vineyard, Clone 191, set for a September 2009 release, displays cassis, coffee, and mocha notes and has a vibrancy of aromas that is mirrored in the heft and viscosity of its mid-palate. In the mouth the wine shows a great silkiness and density, and it significant tannins fan out broadly from mid-palate to finish. The Ghielmetti Vineyard, Clone 191 has all the hallmarks of world-class Cabernet in it angular, tannic structure and lengthy persistence of finish. While drinkable in the near-term, especially when paired with a substantial meat course, this wine's joys will be revealed fully over the course of the next 10-15 years. SOLD OUT
Release Date: September 2009
Release Price: $300/three-pack
2006 Cabernet Sauvignon - Ghielmetti Vineyard, Clone 30, set for a March 2009 release, is a study in the tension and balance between power and elegance. Displaying very intense dark berry, cassis, cigar box, and toasty oaks aromas, the wine is wonderfully big and defined in the nose. While some wines have very broad tannins that bleed off quickly, this Cabernet has very focused, substantial tannins from entry all the way through a long finish. Though the elements of ageability are present in abundance, the wine has a hefty silkiness in the mid-palate that sets up well in opposition to the tannins so that overall, the feeling is one of elegance and restraint. SOLD OUT
Release Date: March 18, 2009
Release Price: $300/three-pack
2006 Cabernet Sauvignon - Smith Ranch, Clone 8 is a wonderfully elegant, full-bodied wine displaying generous flavors of cassis, black cherry, chocolate, and toasty oak. A voluptuous mid-palate leads to a finish with balanced acidity and tannin. While not the most tannic Cabernet in the Collection, the Smith Ranch has the grip to age for 10-15 years and the elegance and flavor to make the wait worthwhile. SOLD OUT
Release Date: January 2009
Release Price: $300/three-pack
2006 Cabernet Sauvignon - Ghielmetti Vineyard, Clone 4 is a wine whose greatest distinction comes from its aromatic complexity. While showing the classic aromatic mix of cassis, cigar box, semi-sweet-chocolate that define great Cabernet, this wine also has an exotic wood note that reminds me slightly of Cabernet Franc. Taken as a whole, the wine is splendidly odiferous. In the mouth, Clone 4 is silky and round with blue-black fruit flavors. Not as big a wine as Smith Ranch in terms of tannin, it is very refined and classy. Bolstered structurally by acidity as much as tannin, Clone 4 should age for more than 10 years when stored properly. SOLD OUT
Release Date: January 2009
Release Price: $240/three-pack