2019 Vintage Reserve
Sonoma ValleyRated 95pts Wine Enthusiast & 93pts Wine Spectator. Artist Chris McNally honors the refurbished 1953 International Panel Truck, now property centerpiece, referred to as "Boss Lady".
Retail $142 | 15-20% off for Bacchus Club Members
Tasting NOTES
Our 2019 Vintage Reserve consists of layers that unfold in every swirl, sniff and sip. Upon first impressions, youll find rich aromas of baking chocolate, violet, purple sage and pencil shavings that highlight its complex flavor profile. With flavors of spiced plum, dried lavender, vanilla beans and toasted star anise, this wine leans more powerful and thick on the palate. While delicious at any time you choose to enjoy it, our Vintage Reserve has the finesse to age 20+ years.
Rated 95 Points Wine Enthusiast
This powerful, intense and firmly textured wine waves the flag for great Sonoma-grown Cabernet. It wraps fine-grained tannins around just-ripe black fruit flavors and tempting oak accents of cinnamon, char and clove. Not overly ripe, the wine shows great balance and should expect a long life. Best from 2028-2038. -Jim Gordon
Rated 93 Points Wine Spectator
Richly fruited, with a broad, caressing wave of mulberry and blackberry preserves rolling through slowly, laced with black licorice and violet notes and coated with a warm, toasty edge on the finish, where an echo of warm earth keeps this honest. -James Molesworth
Vineyard NOTES
Since 1981, the Bundschu family has crafted a limited bottling of the vintage's most elegant and expressive vines with the designation Vintage Reserve. Winemaker Keith Emerson selects individual barrels to blend a wine that showcases the distinctive character of Cabernet-family grapes grown on the southwest slopes of the Mayacamas Mountain Range. Our 160+ year old estate vineyard lies eight miles north of San Pablo Bay on steep, shallow soils of volcanic ash and tufa, exposed to pervasive maritime breezes, long daylight hours and extreme diurnal temperature shifts. Top blocks are farmed specifically for Vintage Reserve that yield 2.5 tons/acre.
Production NOTES
2019 was an exciting year for mother nature in Northern California. Winter was filled with high winds and record-breaking rainfall that continued into early spring. The extreme weather favored our grapes and meant little irrigation was needed during the growing season. In many ways 2019 mimicked the growing conditions of 2018: a relatively cool spring followed by a warm summer and a near-perfect harvest - beginning only a day earlier than the year prior. Temperatures were slightly warmer which resulted in lower acid levels and riper fruit characteristics, but a moderate growing season allowed for exceptional hangtime across all varieties. Adding to the excitement of harvest, epic winds during the fall led to historic power shut-offs which left us running off generator power. 2019 is truly a vintage that will be remembered for not only producing excellent wines but great stories as well.
- Wine Type:
- Red Wine
- Varietal Composition:
-
- 85% Cabernet Sauvignon
- 9% Cabernet Franc
- 6% Malbec
- Appellation:
- Sonoma Valley
- PH:
- 3.84
- Barrel Aging:
-
- 18 months | 100% French oak, 70% new | Taransaud, Quintessence, Ermitage and Demptos
- Alcohol %:
- 14.9%
Retail $142 | 15-20% off for Bacchus Club Members
