Christie Kiley on January 13, 2014 0 Comments Quick Characteristics Winery: St. Supéry Estate Vineyards & Winery Location: Napa Valley, CA Vintage: 2011 ABV: 13.5% pH: 3.72 T. Acidity: 6.0 g/L Residual Sugar: <0.2% Pairs With: Grilled Steak or Tuna, Herb-roasted meats, Gouda The holidays are past us. Some of us might be thinking “finally” while others might have other more bitter sweet thoughts of yet another holiday season which has gone by oh so quickly. In either case, the preparation, anticipation followed by visiting with our oh-so-missed friends and family, not to mention the clean-up, at the end of it all, leaves us filled with warmth and happiness, but also can leave us tired! Though some of this time might have been paired with some winding down during the holidays, there always seems to be some need for even some post-holiday wind down. Here is a wine you can do just that with – the St. Supery 2011 Estate Cabernet Sauvignon. St. Supery is found in Rutherford, Napa Valley just off the famous Route 29. The winery’s story all started in 1982, when the Skalli family of France bought 1500 acres of the Dollarhide Ranch located in the northeastern corner of Napa Valley. Grape Varieties / Blend: Cabernet Sauvignon: 77% Merlot: 11% Cabernet Franc: 5% Malbec: 5% Petit Verdot: 2% Just four years later, they purchased another fifty-six acres in Rutherford, a well renown location known for growing quality fruit and producing rich, complex and intriguing Cabs representative of their terroir. Eleven years later, the first wines were released; a Meritage red and white. St. Supery’s objective was to only represent the best region of California, Napa, and represent that in their wine. As Napa has the ability to grow and create great fruit of any varietal, they thought it best to make a blend of red and white to share with its public what they thought of as the best of the Napa Valley. Since then, they have continued with the tradition and over a decade later, it still holds true. The wine and vineyard team of St. Supery work very close together and share a similar philosophy. First, they start with the notion that they grow wine, not grapes. This mindset creates for a harmonious transit from its growth in the vineyard to when the fruit arrives from the vineyards to the winery. It is about how the fruit tastes, its maturity and it not all about what the laboratory tests have to say. Arriving and choosing to harvest grapes purely based on their sugar level is only a small fraction of the when-to-harvest-practice. The results of their growing and winemaking practices are obviously working. Later on, I will share with you about their other wines, but for now, I want to talk about this Estate Cabernet Sauvignon. The 2011 is a blend of 77% Cabernet Sauvignon with 11% Merlot, with fine touches of Cabernet Franc, Malbec and Petit Verdot blended in. They aged the wine in 100% French oak for twenty months with over 50% of the barrels being new. Typically, I would not mention the alcohol content, but this one is noteworthy at 13.5%. For those of you who are familiar with Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon, the lower alcohol level is rare. As mentioned before, the team at St. Supery is not all about achieving high sugar levels, which result in high alcohol levels, but instead about how and when the grapes are ready. You will have to try it for yourself. The wine is beautiful to sip solo as an inviting night cap wrapped up in a blanket on the couch with a favorite movie or with your favorite winter comfort foods. The aromas are delicate and deep with notes of cherry, delicious currant and light notes of plum and dusty earth (not surprising coming from Rutherford). The bouquet from the oak aging is rich with hints of almost smoky vanilla, tobacco and baking chocolate. The palate is soft and profound, yet the body remains on the lighter side with flavors of fresh red fruits and berries and rounds out with a touch of cassis. The tannins on the finish are soft and velvety with floral perfumes that linger with more of that cassis. The 2011 St. Supery Estate Cabernet Sauvignon is truly enjoyable and satisfying. What would you expect to pay for such a wine? Try $30. Not bad at all for a relaxing post-holiday wind down, which I’d say is well-deserved. More Wine Reviews: REVIEW: 2009 Bramare Cabernet Sauvignon from Viña Cobos REVIEW: 2009 Gundlach Bundschu Cabernet Sauvignon REVIEW: Cakebread Cellars Red Hills 2010 Zinfandel REVIEW: 2010 Montefalco Rosso from Giampaolo Tabarrini
