Snowden Rutherford Cabernet w/ ribeye steak

Snowden Rutherford Cabernet w/ ribeye steak

With ribeye steak leftover from our gala Mother’s Day dinner, Linda prepared the chopped up baked potatoes with corn, peas and asparagus as a delicious side. Following the extraordinary Rutherford and Oakville Napa Cabernets recently, and on Sunday, I pulled from the cellar this aged vintage label from the appellation.

Seeking the closest geographical source for a comparison tasting, I pulled from the cellar a 2001 Snowden estate bottled cab. Snowden is from the lower southern end of Oakville district in the foothills about 700 feet elevation. The wines ended up being in stark contrast in terroir and style - but both well suited to the grilled steak.

I wrote about Snowden Vineyards in a blogpost back in 2015, excerpted here, when we tasted an earlier vintage release.

From October, 2015

Snowden Vineyards Napa Cabernet Sauvignon 1997

We first discovered Snowden Vineyards during their inaugural release back in the early nineties. We hosted co-owner Scott Snowden at one of our wine producer dinners at Brix in Napa Valley back then. I recall we enjoyed hearing his reminiscences about his family living down in Oakland and visiting Napa Valley and eventually settling there, and him and his brother taking over and developing the property after his father's death.

Today, Scott is a managing director for Snowden Vineyards. An interesting side note, he has also appeared as a visiting judge in Craig Johnson's fascinating "Longmire" mysteries, one of our favorite streaming series! 

Snowden's parents scoured Napa Valley and the adjoining hills looking for a suitable parcel that they could afford. Eventually they found and acquired a remote parcel in the hills on the east side of the Silverado Trail between St. Helena and Rutherford in the spring of 1955, a 160 acre ranch that had been in the Albert and Jane Eisan family since 1895. 

Along the south boundary of the property, Albert's uncle, Ward Eisan, owned a comparably sized parcel which was even more remote than Albert's -- access to Ward Eisan's property was through Albert's. Today, Ward Eisan's ranch is the site of Rutherford Hill Winery, Auberge du Soliel Hotel and Restaurant, Katheryn Hall Winery, and Sloan Winery.

According to their website at the time - "Following Wayne Snowden’s death in 1977, Wayne and Virginia’s sons, Scott and Randy Snowden, assumed responsibility for the property. In 1981, they removed all of the then-producing vineyards and orchards and replanted them to Cabernet Sauvignon utilizing budwood from Jordan Vineyard near Healdsburg.  Through the 1980s, they sold grapes from the resulting 11 acre vineyard -- today called "The Brothers Vineyard" -- to Stag’s Leap Wine Cellars.  During that period, the family worked closely with Warren Winiarski, owner of Stag's Leap Wine Cellars, and his viticultural consultant, Danny Schuester, to optimize trellising, training, and cropping of the vineyard, track cultural variables and correlate these to wine quality'.

"Beginning in the 1990s, grapes from the property went to a number of other vintners, including Silver Oak Wine Cellars, Frank Family Vineyard, David Ramey, Viader, and Caymus Vineyards. Commencing with the 1993 harvest, Scott and Randy began to retain a portion of each harvest for the production of estate-specific family wines. Gradually, an increasing amount of the grapes produced from the property were used in Snowden wines."

Linda recalled tonight, that the artistic label on this bottle was designed by Scott’s wife. We recalled he shared that she was also involved in designing the Marilyn Merlot labels that are so popular amongst collectors, and of which we hold more than two dozen vintages. Today, Joann Ortega Snowden is a partner in Ortega Design Studio in St. Helena where she and her twin sister, Susann, design wine labels and other graphics for wineries in the United States and Europe. 

Today, the fourth generation of Snowden’s are involved in helping manage Snowden Vineyards producing Snowden wines. According to the current website, the current winemaker is Diana Snowden Seysses, a Napa Valley native and the eldest of the four third-generation-Snowdens active in the family’s vineyard and wine endeavor. Diana graduated from the Viticulture and Enology program at the University of California at Davis in 2001. 

During and after her studies, she worked at wineries in California and France, including Robert Mondavi Winery, Mumm Napa Valley, the Araujo Estate, Ramey Wine Cellars, Fleur de Boüard, and Domaine Leflaive. In January, 2003, Diana became oenologist at Domain Dujac in Burgundy. Diana became winemaker at Snowden commencing with the 2005 harvest and since then has divided her professional time between California and Burgundy, where she lives with her husband Jeremy and their sons, Aubert and Blaise. 

We acquired our first Snowden Napa Valley Cabernet in the 1993 vintage and every vintage thereafter through the nineties, and off and on since. According to our Cellartracker records, we still hold ten vintages of this wine.

Like another tasting when we opened a 1997 vintage release, tonight, the 2001 release was still showing well. Back then I wrote, “This '97 is a testament to the vintage, considered a top vintage with longevity for Napa Cabernet, which took several years to finally open and reveal its true potential, even to the point of being outscored by the sleeper '98, considered inferior in the early years after release but showed well in intermediate years while the '97 was still closed and 'lying low'.”

“Now, at eighteen years of age, this '97 is most likely at its peak, will not improve any further with aging, but is not showing any diminution either. It showed dark blackish garnet color, medium body, firm, a bit tight, slightly astringent the first evening upon opening, but notably, this astringency was totally gone the next evening, black berry and black cherry fruits with tones of cedar, black olives, oak, and tangy tannins on the long lingering tongue puckering finish.”

As noted, we have held a dozen vintages dating of Snowden dating back to their inaugural releases in 1993-94. We still hold a half dozen and pulled this 2001 release hoping it would be a ‘Goldilocks’ tasting - not too young, but not too old. It proved to be so, just right!

Tonight, the 2001, at twenty three years, the important fill level and cork were still perfect, as was the foil and the label. I have to say this exceeded my expectations, still seeming to be at the apex of its drinking window, showing well, and likely still to have several years yet of enjoyable quality drinking. Some of this is attributable to the 2001 vintage, for sure.

My records show we lasted tasted this vintage release of this label back in 2014 as covered in this blogpost - 2001 Vintage Napa Cab Comparison Reveals Contrasts in Terroir

Snowden Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon 2001

We discovered Snowden shortly after their inaugural release in the early nineties and still hold several vintages dating back to then. We met Scott and Randy Snowden during our early Napa Wine Experience events from that era.

Tonight this was completely consistent with that earlier tasting back in 2015. In fact this bottle seemed to be holding up better than that earlier bottle, perhaps due to bottle variation and did not have the symptoms  of diminution or deterioration experienced earlier.  I gave this bottle a 91 rating, better than that earlier tasting. 

The '01 was dark garnet colored with a subtle rust on the rim, full bodied, firm and a bit tight, forward black cherry, black currant and black cherry fruits, accented by tones of black tea, black olive, herb, cedar and spice, finishing with a gripping lingering tannins.  

RM 91 points. 

https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=244995

http://www.snowdenvineyards.com/

Snowden Vineyards Lost Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon 1997

Snowden Vineyards Lost Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon 1997 - 

Buy/by the case! The challenges, delights, and learnings from tasting/exploring one's investment in one label over time.

With roast beef sandwiches and artisan cheeses, nuts and fruits, I pulled from the cellar this aged 1997 vintage Napa Cab. The 1997 vintage was hailed at the time as a stellar vintage projected to be long lived and age-worthy. It's high accolades and ratings overshadowed the much pooh-poohed 98 vintage so as to drive down prices of that vintage, and escalate prices of the already vaulted '97. 

Paradoxically, for many years to follow, many '98 Napa Cabs offered affordable pleasant drinking, while their more expensive '97 counterparts underwhelmed, were closed and tight. 

Alas, tonight, this 1997 vintage release second label single vineyard designated release from Snowden Vineyards, at 22 years of age, was more impressive, expressive, complex and fruitful than I recall from the many previous tastings of this wine when it was younger, from the case that I acquired upon release. 

My records for this wine record tastings dating back to 2000 with notations in 03, 04, 05, 07, 09 and 2011 - Snowden Lost Vineyard Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon 1997 - May 15, '03. June 30, '00, Nov 14, '04 July 18, 2005, December 25, 2007, January 6, 2009, Nov 12, 2011.

Having been tasting and recording my perceptions and experiences in tasting notes for over two decades, with over 10000 citations published, I am on the record of preferences and perspectives on wines. And, I have a track record of comparisons to calibrate and measure my palate and tasting discrimination, so I have a good sense of my consistency over time. That said, I rated this wine 90 points in the early years, then reduced my rating to 88 points for several years, at which time I started referring to the wine as 'tight' or closed. Notably, not all tastings are recorded and subsequently published.

On July 18, 2005 , I wrote - Snowden Lost Vineyard Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon 1997 - RM 90 - Firm tight subtle smoky earthy leather blends well with dark berry fruit and very subtle mocha on the full fragrant finish. Bordeaux style blend of Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot tastes true to form like a lower left bank Bordeaux!  

My January 6, 2009 tasted referred to the return of the fruit from earlier tastings - Snowden Lost Vineyard Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon 1997 - RM 90 - Firm, structured, black raspberry, black cherry and currant on a balanced, finely integrated tannin finish. More fruit and lacking leather and earth of previous tastings. Tasted w/ L at Angeli's Restaurant, our favorite neighborhood bistro.

In 2011 I wrote; "Down to the last few bottles of a case acquired upon release in the late nineties. Consistent with earlier tasting notes taking into account the evolution of this aging wine. Starting to show its age a bit as the dark garnet color starts to take on a slight brownish rust hew and the fruit is starting to fall off a bit and give way to the smoke and leather nose and flavor. Still firm and tight with the smoky leather predominating over the dark berry and black cherry fruit, with forward pronounced cedar and a hint of cassis and a full fragrant firm tannin lingering finish with a bit of tight high alcohol heat. Bordeaux style blend of Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot tastes true to form like a lower left bank Bordeaux!"

RM 89 points.

Of course there are also bottle variations from one bottle to another, but this is the truest form of comparison since all these bottles were acquired at the same time and experienced the same storage and handing over the years.  

This is the fun and joy of having a wine cellar, to experience a wine over time and witness its aging effects. I write often in these pages about how a particular label is showing the effects of aging and where it stands in its 'drinking window'. Indeed, a benefit of having multiple bottles of the same wine is to compare them over time. And, the risk of misplacing a bottle, or just overlooking it and keeping it too long so as to miss the prime or apex of its drinkability. Hence effective cellar management is required of one's collection. 

Tonight this wine was delightful, reflecting the best attributes of this wine, without the adverse affects of diminution from its age, exceeding expectations of the the evening's tasting experience, and perhaps also showing what promise this vintage was projected to deliver!

 

Family dinner features vintage Napa Cabernets Constant and Snowden

Family dinner features vintage Napa Cabernets Constant and Snowden

Bill and Beth, Bill and Jan, Freddie Constant,
Linda and your's truly

With sister Jan and Bro-in-law Bill visiting from OC, we opened for a grilled tenderloin steak dinner two classic 1995 vintage Napa Valley Cabernets, Constant Diamond Mountain Vineyards and Snowden.

We still hold more than a half dozen vintages of each of these wines dating back to these early releases in the mid-nineties.

Jan and Bill were with us when we visited the spectacular Constant Diamond Mountain Vineyards (shown below) high atop Diamond Mountain where were hosted by the late Freddie Constant (shown right), owner, during our Napa Valley Wine Experience back in 2011.

Constant tasting room overlooking infinity pool
with vineyards in the background

Constant is one of the oldest producing vineyards in Napa Valley and sits at the top of Diamond Mountain toward the north end of the Mayacamas Range straddling the summit separating Napa Valley to the east and Sonoma Valley to the west. 

We scoured the cellar for a Constant Cabernet to commemorate that visit and pulled this bottle, the oldest vintage in our collection.

To match the vintage for a mini-horizontal tasting we also pulled this 1995 Snowden from the same vintage.

Constant Napa Valley Diamond Mountain Vineyard  Cabernet Sauvignon 1995

This was the last bottle from a three bottle lot of this vintage that we acquired at auction. We acquired more recent vintages of this wine during our winery visit in 2011. Tonight we pulled the oldest vintage in our cellar as part of regular cellar management.

This bottle showed signs of recent seepage and the cork was a bit saturated so it was time to drink. This bottle showed some modest signs of diminution from age and perhaps the seepage exfiltration.

From my previous earlier tasting of this label back in 2013; "Wow, what a surprise, we had tasted this wine previously with uninspiring results. Tonight, this wine overachieved, vastly exceeding expectations. Dark purple color, medium to full bodied, full forward flavors of black berry and black cherry fruits with traces of anise and hints of tobacco, tea and leather on a lingering, moderate, soft tannin finish"

RM 88 points.

https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=36373


 Snowden Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon 1995

To round out a mini-horizontal tasting, we selected another 1995 Napa Cab to complement and compare with the Constant above.

Like the Constant, we tasted this during a Napa Valley wine visit with the Producer. We tasted and acquired this wine during a Napa Valley visit where we met the producer Randy Snowden during a wine dinner we hosted with him at Brix Restaurant during one of our Napa Valley Wine tours back in the late 1990's.Pre-internet and digital photography, I don't have records or photos to memorialize that event.

This was remarkably holding its own at 28 years of age showing modest signs of diminution from aging, but no serious deterioration, still within its drinking window, albeit past its prime.

Dark blackish garnet colored, medium-full bodied, bright floral sprites with ripe tangy black cherry and berry fruits accented with notes of leather, tobacco leaf, tea, hints of spice and oak on a moderate tannin finish.

RM 89 points.

https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=322981

Later we pulled another vintage 1995 from the cellar to continue or horizontal tasting, a Rosemount Balmoral Shiraz 1995.

Rosemount Estates Balmoral McLaren Vale Shiraz 1995

Like the Oracle Shiraz pulled last night after dinner, we hold more than a dozen vintages of this Australian Shiraz and as above, we pulled one of the earlier, older vintages to round out this horizontal vintage tasting.

Its been eight years since our last published tasting notes of this vintage release. While still holding its own after 23 years, this too is showing its age as the berry fruits turn to tones of raisin, fig and tobacco.

Dark full flavor, over ripe berry, raisin, notes of blueberry, plum fruit, with spice and anise. Showing age on opening but opened and softened with a long full complex finish.

This frontal assault of raisiny fruits was a bit over the top for Bill, not for the feint of heart, but the blueberry tones still reveal themselves - almost bordering on notes of a Port, this was well suited for after dinner with the dark chocolate deserts and hearty cheeses over the grilled steak.

RM 87 points.

https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=12022

Freemark Abbey Howell Mtn Merlot - Snowden Napa Cab

Freemark Abbey Howell Mtn Merlot and Snowden Napa Cab Anchor Angeli's Italian Dinner

For a wine dinner gathering with friends, Bob & Gloria, and Bill & Beth C, we dined at Angelis Italian our neighborhood trattoria. Bill and I brought a couple of bottles BYOB - Bill brought a select Freemark Abbey Howell Mountain Merlot to pair with my vintage '97 vintage release of Snowden Napa Cabernet, which I brought to follow the current '13 single vineyard release tasted yesterday at Vin Chicago.

Bill and I both hold significant collections of Freemark Abbey and Bill is a long-time wine club member with numerous special limited release labels such as this Howell Mountain Merlot bottling. Visiting the winery and touring their cellar/library was one of the highlights of our Napa Valley Wine Experience 09.

Freemark Abbey Howell Mountain Merlot 2010

Bill brought from his cellar this is a limited release bottling only available to wine club members.

The Howell Mountain fruit pops out and stands big for a Napa Merlot - dark garnet colored, medium-full bodied, bright forward concentrated black berry and black cherry fruits accented by a layer of mocha with hints of earth, cassis and tobacco.

RM 91 points. 

https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=1679410







Snowden Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon 1997

As stated yesterday in these pages we hold several vintages of the early releases of Snowden from their inaugural release back in 1993 through 2001. I pulled this '97 to taste and compare to the current release tasted yesterday at Vin Chicago. 

At seventeen years, this was tight and focused. Much like that recent single vineyard designated release, this was blackish garnet colored, medium-full bodied, but with somewhat subdued concentrated black berry and black currant fruits with tones of tangy clove spice, hints of graphite, black olive and truffles, turning to a long lingering clinging tannin finish, holding a long after taste of moderate oak.

RM 91 points. 

https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=226666

Snowden Vineyards Napa Cabernet Sauvignon 1997

Snowden Vineyards Napa Cabernet Sauvignon 1997

We first discovered Snowden Vineyards during their inaugural release back in the early nineties. We hosted co-owner Scott Snowden at one of our wine producer dinners at Brix in Napa Valley back then. I recall we enjoyed hearing his reminiscences about his family living down in Oakland and visiting Napa Valley and eventually settling there, and him and his brother taking over and developing the property after his father's death.

Snowden's parents scoured Napa Valley and the adjoining hills looking for a suitable parcel that they could afford. Eventually the found and acquired a remote parcel in the hills on the east side of the Silverado Trail between St. Helena and Rutherford in the spring of 1955, a 160 acre ranch that had been in the Albert and Jane Eisan family since 1895.  Along the south boundary of the property, Albert's uncle, Ward Eisan, owned a comparably sized parcel which was even more remote than Albert's -- access to Ward Eisan's property was through Albert's.  Today, Ward Eisan's ranch is the site of Rutherford Hill Winery, Auberge du Soliel Hotel and Restaurant, Katheryn Hall Winery, and Sloan Winery. 

According to their website - "Following Wayne Snowden’s death in 1977, Wayne and Virginia’s sons, Scott and Randy Snowden, assumed responsibility for the property.  In 1981, they removed all of the then-producing vineyards and orchards and replanted them to Cabernet Sauvignon utilizing budwood from Jordan Vineyard near Healdsburg.  Through the 1980s, they sold grapes from the resulting 11 acre vineyard -- today called "The Brothers Vineyard" -- to Stag’s Leap Wine Cellars.  During that period, the family worked closely with Warren Winiarski, owner of Stag's Leap Wine Cellars, and his viticultural consultant, Danny Schuester, to optimize trellising, training, and cropping of the vineyard, track cultural variables and correlate these to wine quality'.

"Beginning in the 1990s, grapes from the property went to a number of other vintners, including Silver Oak Wine Cellars, Frank Family Vineyard, David Ramey, Viader, and Caymus Vineyards.  Commencing with the 1993 harvest, Scott and Randy began to retain a portion of each harvest for the production of estate-specific family wines.  Gradually, an increasing amount of the grapes produced from the property were used in Snowden wines."

We acquired our first Snowden Napa Valley Cabernet in the 1993 vintage and every vintage thereafter through the nineties, and off and on since. According to our Cellartracker records, we still hold ten vintages of this wine.

This '97 is a testament to the vintage, considered a top vintage with longevity for Napa Cabernet, which took several years to finally open and reveal its true potential, even to the point of being outscored by the sleeper '98, considered inferior in the early years after release but showed well in intermediate years while the '97 was still closed and 'lying low'.

Now, at eighteen years of age, this '97 is most likely at its peak, will not improve any further with aging, but is not showing any diminution either. It showed dark blackish garnet color, medium body, firm, a bit tight, slightly astringent the first evening upon opening, but notably, this astringency was totally gone the next evening, black berry and black cherry fruits with tones of cedar, black olives, oak, and tangy tannins on the long lingering tongue puckering finish.

This was a perfect accompaniment tonight to cheese ravioli. 

RM 91 points.

https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=5362

http://www.snowdenvineyards.com/

Big Cab Napa/Sonoma Trio Key Surf & Turf Dinner

Big Cab Napa/Sonoma Trio Key Surf & Turf Dinner

For an end of week Friday night surf & turf dinner, Linda prepared Sockeye Salmon and NY Strip steaks accented by rice pilaf, bacon wrapped green beans and baked potatoes and Beth brought a dinner salad. I pulled two 1995 Napa Valley Cabernets and Bill brought a Sonoma Reserve Cab to round out the big red flight.

The mini horizontal tasting staged Snowden and Pride Mountain Napa Valley Cabernets alongside a Chateau St Jean Reserve Sonoma Cabernet from Bill's cellar. We have visited each of these producer's over the years during our Napa/Sonoma Wine Experiences.

We were joined by son Ryan who snuck out of the to come over for an impromptu tasting.

We met with Scott Snowden as a featured producer at a dinner we hosted at Brix in St Helena back shortly after they were 'outed' by Wine Spectator Magazine in their feature 'An Undiscovered Dozen' about several emerging hot producers of Napa Cabs. Over the ensuing years, we met with and acquired each of the twelve labels of which we still hold many yet today. We hold a half dozen vintages of each of these labels opened tonight. They seem to be aging the same following the same aging profile.

After dinner fresh baked dark chocolate brownies with fresh berries and Beth's chocolate and crunchy butter toffee highlighted the red wines as much as the beef and pre-dinner artisan cheeses.

With the Salmon course we tasted:

Fritz Russian River Valley Chardonnay 2008.

Butter colored, medium bodied, slightly tart on opening with layer of acidity, tone of green apple, tropical fruits, hints of lemon and nutty almond.

We tasted this a month ago when the tartness and acidity conflicted with lobster tail and lemon, but tonight it complimented the sockeye salmon nicely.

RM 87 points.

https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=772492



Snowden Napa Valley Estate Cabernet Sauvignon 1995

We still hold more than a half dozen vintages of this label from their early days through their first decade, and including some recent releases as well. 

Surprisingly, this was the most expressive of the three wines tasted tonight. There seemed to be a role reversal between the Snowden and the Pride from what I would have expected. Our tasting experience of the Snowden this night was consistent with my tasting notes of the previous tastings back in 2005 and 2007. 

Dark garnet colored, medium full bodied, aromatic black berry and black cherry fruits accented by tones of earthy leather, graphite, tea and herbs turning to anise on the lingering tannin laced finish.

Tonight, the Snowden had the same profile as before except that after a couple hours it opened to reveal a sweet Bing Cherry tone that lingered through the evening. The next day, this returned to black fruits with smokey black tea and anise the following day, with a slight mustiness set in, and it seemed to lose its balance and come across a bit flabby while maintaining its firm backbone .

RM 91 points. WS gave it 93 back on release.

https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=322981


Pride Mountain Vineyards Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon 1995 

We visited the winery high up at the top of Spring Mountain and acquired this wine back during our Napa Wine Experience 1999 and again in 2003. We also most recently featured this wine at our 95 Horizontal Cab tasting two years ago. Tonight's tasting experience of the Pride fit my tasting notes of the previous tasting back in 2013.

While my inventory says this is my last bottle, I found a mixed case with four more up on the top rack of the cellar. Nice discovery since this is aging well and promises to hold on for a few more years. 

Dark, full bodied, firm, initially closed and tight - decanted and set aside, after an hour and half it started to open up to reveal full complex dark blackberry and black currant fruits accented by anise, with hints of spice, dusty cedar, and a subtle dark mocha on the full firm lingering tannin finish.

RM 90 points.

https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=6236


Chateau St Jean Sonoma County Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon 2004

We visited the elegant Chateau and Estate in Sonoma Valley with Bill and Beth during our Napa Sonoma Wine Experience back in 2009 when we tasted and Bill acquired this label. Chateau St Jean is one of the classiest producers and wineries in Sonoma Valley with its expansive grounds of stylish gardens and old world style Chateau and accompanying buildings - one of the most picturesque and authentic old world style sites in the region. Its one of our favorite producers in Sonoma that we've visited on numerous occasions including that visit.

This was dark garnet colored with medium body. It was the most polished and smoothest of the three wines, partly due to the Sonoma Cabernets being a bit softer and perhaps also because this is a Reserve blend rather than a firmer narrower Napa Cab, and as such had less backbone and structure than the other two wines but was more complex. Dark berry fruits and predominated with tones of black berry, black raspberry and touch of black cherry turning to tones of subtle mocha, hints of leather and cedar, and smooth soft tannins on the moderate finish.

RM 90 points.

https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=659625

Good Grief.

Linda noted this the next morning as she unloaded the dish washer. Even for a seemingly simple tasting, five of us and four wines tasted .... we still managed to use a large selection of wine glasses, and this doesn't count or show the water glasses!

2001 Vintage Napa Cab Comparison Reveals Contrasts in Terroir

2001 Vintage Napa Cab Comparison Reveals Contrasts in Terroir

Bach'ing it for the weekend, we invited Bill and son Ryan over for a grilled steak dinner and impromptu wine tasting. Following our tasting of the blockbuster 2001 Cliff Lede Cabernet recently, I suggested we try '01 Cabs as the theme for a comparison tasting. Bill brought from his cellar a HaLo, the flagship wine of Trefethen Vineyards which we visited together during out Napa Wine Experience 2013. We scoured our cellar for a similar wine to compare. While I had several '01 Napa Cabs from which to select, most were from mountain appellations reflecting our penchant for that style. Seeking the closest geographical source for a comparison tasting, we pulled from the cellar a 2001 Snowden estate bottled cab. Snowden is from the lower southern end of Oakville district in the foothills about 700 feet elevation. Halo is from the Oak Knoll District at the lower end of Napa Valley nestled up against the base of Mt Veeder. The two wines ended up being in stark contrast in terroir and style - both well suited to the grilled strip steaks.


Trefethen Halo Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon 2001

Befitting the flagship brand name, HaLo is named for the producer's children, Hailey and Loren, who grew up in the middle of the Hillspring Vineyard, source for the wine. Hillspring is located in the foothills tucked up against the base of Mt Veeder in the lower Mayacamas range on the western edge of Napa Valley. The estate vineyard sits west of the winery and tasting room at the entrance to Napa Valley just north of the town of Napa. The historic building on the property suffered extensive damage in last week's earthquake.

The '01 Halo was smooth, polished and elegant, a symphony of layers of fruit flavors - berry, black cherry and nuances of soft oak and delicate floral. While complex, it was sophisticated and almost soft, lacking any pretense of muscular structure or backbone on the layer of silky tannins.

RM 92 points.

https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=621303

http://www.trefethen.com/


Snowden Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon 2001

We discovered Snowden shortly after their inaugural release in the early nineties and still hold several vintages dating back to then. We met Scott and Randy Snowden during our early Napa Wine Experience events from that era.

The '01 was dark garnet colored with a subtle rust on the rim, full bodied, firm and a bit tight, forward black cherry, black currant and black cherry fruits, accented by tones of black tea, black olive, herb, cedar and spice, finishing with a gripping tannins.  A layer of funky earth, leather, and musty wet wood hung over the fruits and didn't dissipate until late into the night.

RM 88 points.

https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=244995






Flora Springs "Trilogy" Napa Valley Bordeaux Blend 2010

I picked this up today and wanted to try it against a couple benchmark cabs to see if I wanted to buy more. We hold numerous vintages of this wine going back to the 1991 vintage. It used to be a perennial favorite. This 2010 vintage release is as good as any in my recollection and definitely warrants being included in a cellar collection. I will most certainly go back and buy more. This release is a blend of 83% Cabernet Sauvignon, 12% Merlot, 4% Malbec and 1% Cabernet Franc. It has the best of both worlds, all the positives of a nicely crafted, balanced Bordeaux varietal blend, with the new world 'instant gratification of a full forward rich concentrated Napa Valley fruits. 

This was dark inky purple colored, full bodied, concentrated rich black berry and black raspberry fruits accented by complex layers of cassis, tobacco, dark chocolate mocha, hints of caramel and soft sweet oak on the smooth silky tannins on the long lingering finish.

RM 92 points. 92 points Wine Enthusiast, 91 points Robert Parker's Wine Advocate 

https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=1455817

http://www.florasprings.com/ 

Fog Dog Sonoma Coast Chardonnay 2012

Prior to dinner, Linda broiled two lobster tails to serve lobster medallions with drawn butter that we served with Fog Dog Chardonnay.

FogDog is the label of Sonoma Coast wines from famed Napa producer Joseph Phelps. FogDog is the whimsical name for the expression used when there is a slight break in a fog bank, and clear skies can be seen.

This release is 100% Sonoma Coast Chardonnay sourced from the Phelps owned Freestone estate vineyards and the Dutton Ranch Mill Station Vineyard.
 

Light straw colored, light bodied, bright, crisp, nicely balanced acidity, tangy citrus, stone fruit giving way to green apple tones with hints of pineapple and tangy lemon on a smooth lingering finish.

RM 90 points

https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=1916269

http://www.josephphelps.com/2012-fogdog-chardonnay

Snowden Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon 2000

Snowden Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon 2000

We met Scott Snowden during one of our first Napa Valley excursions back in the mid-nineties. It was shortly after Snowden was featured in the Wine Spectator "A Dozen to Watch" chronicling twelve emerging hot producers of Napa Valley wines. He was a lawyer and former judge before taking over the family wine business with his brother Randy and their wives. Their father had acquired the Napa Valley property to move his family out of the congestion of city life in Oakland where he was a professor at U Cal at the time.

Over the ensuring years we met with and featured each one of the twelve in our Napa Wine Experience dinners and tastings. On this day, we met Randy at Brix Restaurant and tasted his wines over lunch. Over the following years we collected Snowden Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon including this 2000 vintage offering. We still hold in our cellar a vertical of vintages of Snowden dating back to their early 1993 vintage.

I recall hearing him recounting his story of the design of their unique label design by his wife Joanne Ortega Snowden, whom if I recall correctly, also designed the labels for Marilyn Merlot at that time.

Tonight we enjoyed Snowden at home over a perfectly matched dinner of T-bone steak, rice pilaf, and asparagus spears.

Eric Snowden and all the recent press about his betrayal of our government aside, there is no connection between him and Scott or his brother Randy of Napa Valley wine fame.

The Snowden was dark ruby colored, starting to show a tinge of brownish rust color, however it didn't reveal any diminution of its bright vibrant cherry, currant and berry fruits, accented by a layer of eucalyptus before giving way to leather and earth with tones of anise on the tangy tight tannin finish.

RM 90 points.

Cellartracker listed the drinking window of this vintage through 2012 and based on tonight's tasting I revised it to 2016. My records show we still have two more bottles and I'm not feeling rushed to consume them. In fact, we still hold four older vintages and I chose this one tonight based on it having the 'expired' drinking window.

https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=220837

http://www.snowdenvineyards.com/

Snowden 'Ranch' Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon 2009

Snowden 'The Ranch' Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon 2009

Andy brought this wine to dinner at Aria Restaurant in Cupertino. As posted in earlier notes, we first met Randy Snowden at one of our winemaker dinners at Brix Restaurant in Napa back in 1998 and have been collecting Snowden Napa Cabernet Sauvignon ever since. "The Ranch" label has been added in recent years. Randy and his brother Scott, both attorneys, preside over the property that sits 450 to 850 feet above the Silverado Trail. The property was acquired by their parents back in the fifties. My recollection from that meeting was that their father Wayne Snowden was a professor at UC Berkeley when he acquired the property in 1955. After he passed away in 1977 the brothers took over in 1981. They produced their first Snowden label vintage in 1993. Most of their production is sold to Silver Oak, Frank Family Vineyards, Viader and in recent years, David Ramey. 

During these Napa Wine Experience visits of 1997 through 2000 we hosted gala tasting dinners with the 'Undisccovered Dozen' "emerging new wine producers to watch", featured in an article in Wine Spectator Magazine. Many of these producers released their inaugural vintage releases in or about the 1994 vintage.  Those producers and winery visits included Plumpjack, David Arthur, Clark-Claudon, Robert Craig, Del Dotto, Elan,  Paradigm, Pride Vineyards, Snowden, Nils Venge and White Cottage. They are featured on my winesite http://www.unwindwine.com. A complete index of my tasting notes of these wines over the years is on the site at this link to California Producers Index. These producers make up a foundation of our wine cellar collection even today. In many of these wines, we still have vertical selections of these wines, some dating back to those early release vintages.Another of these tasting events is featured in my unwindwine blog http://unwindwine.blogspot.com/2011/07/plumpjack-napa-valley-oakville-estate.html.

The 2009 Cabernet Sauvignon The Ranch is dark purple colored and medium to full bodied. It boasts complex flavors of berry, dark red fruit with a layer of tea and tobacco, with hints of licorice and cassis. This represents good value at $40 for a blend of Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon 75%, Cabernet Franc 18.2%, and Petit Verdot 6.8%.

RM 91 points.

http://www.snowdenvineyards.com/

Snowden Lost Vineyard Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon 1997

Snowden Lost Vineyard Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon 1997

This is our 50th Cabernet Sauvignon review of this year - 45 of which are from Napa Valley. 

Down to the last few bottles of a case acquired upon release in the late nineties. Consistent with earlier tasting notes taking into account the evolution of this aging wine. Starting to show its age a bit as the dark garnet color starts to take on a slight brownish rust hew and the fruit is starting to fall off a bit and give way to the smoke and leather nose and flavor. Still firm and tight with the smoky leather predominating over the dark berry and black cherry fruit, with forward pronounced cedar and a hint of cassis and a full fragrant firm tannin lingering finish with a bit of tight high alcohol heat. Bordeaux style blend of Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot tastes true to form like a lower left bank Bordeaux!  

RM 89 points.

https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=34315

We first were introduced to Snowden wines when we featured Randy Snowden at a Winemaker's luncheon at Brix in Napa Valley during our Napa Wine Experience back in 1998. Randy and his brother Scott, both attorneys, preside over the property that sits 450 to 850 feet above the Silverado Trail. The property was acquired by their parents back in the fifties. My recollection from that meeting was that their father Wayne Snowden was a professor at UC Berkeley when he acquired the property in 1955. After he passed away in 1977 the brothers took over in 1981. They produced their first Snowden label vintage in 1993. Most of their production is sold to Silver Oak, Frank Family Vineyards, Viader and in recent years, David Ramey. 

During these Napa Wine Experience visits of 1997 through 2000 we hosted gala tasting dinners with the 'Undisccovered Dozen' "emerging new wine producers to watch", featured in an article in Wine Spectator Magazine. Many of these producers released their inaugural vintage releases in or about the 1994 vintage.  Those producers and winery visits included Plumpjack, David Arthur, Clark-Claudon, Robert Craig, Del Dotto, Elan,  Paradigm, Pride Vineyards, Snowden, Nils Venge and White Cottage. They are featured on my winesite http://www.unwindwine.com. A complete index of my tasting notes of these wines over the years is on the site at this link to California Producers Index. These producers make up a foundation of our wine cellar collection even today. In many of these wines, we still have vertical selections of these wines, some dating back to those early release vintages.Another of these tasting events is featured in my unwindwine blog http://unwindwine.blogspot.com/2011/07/plumpjack-napa-valley-oakville-estate.html.

This was Snowden's second label from that era. It was a great compliment to Sunday dinner beet pot roast with roasted carrots, onions and potatoes.

http://www.snowdenvineyards.com/

PlumpJack Winery Napa Valley, Oakville, Estate Cabernet Sauvignon 1997

PlumpJack Winery Napa Valley, Oakville, Estate Cabernet Sauvignon 1997

This was the third vintage of this wine - 100% Estate Cabernet Sauvignon made entirely from grapes grown in the vineyards adjacent to the PlumpJack Winery located on Oakville Cross Road in the Oakville AVA in Napa Valley. We tasted and purchased this wine during winery visits in 1998 and 1999, the first tasting being prior to release from the barrel. We hosted then associate winemaker Mary Pisor at a gala dinner at Meadowood Resort at the base of Howell Mountain in Napa (pictured below). The release notes called for this  wine to age up to fifteen years. Indeed in its fourteenth year it's starting to show its age and is beginning the final stage of its drinking profile. It is still holding its own and is very presentable - not yet diminished in decline, however.

We served this wine at a gala family dinner at home with grilled beef tenderloin and salmon dinner with L, sis Dr Pat, Lauren, Erin & Johnny. Chosen from the cellar commemorating one of the favorite Napa wineries of L, Erin and Johnnie, we gathered on the eve of the mother-daughter 5K run at Montrose Harbor on Chicago's lakefront in which we had four generations represented - Evelyn, Linda, Erin and Lucy, and three generations with Pat, Lauren and Teo. 

Firm, medium to full bodied, the black cherry fruit is a bit subdued overtaken by anise, a layer of spicy oak with hints of nutmeg, dark chocolate, vanilla and a tone of cedar and toasted oak on the finish. RM 89 points.
 

 

Pictured above, wine flght from our 1999 Meadowood Resort PlumpJack Wine Producer dinner - Napa Valley Oakville Cabernet Sauvignons - Venge Vineyards Penny Lane Reserve 1995, PlumpJack Reserve 1995 (pre-release hand labeled bottle), and PlumpJack Estate 1997, served with top-flight of 1995 Bordeaux - Chateau Pichon Lalande 1995, Chateau Lafite Rothschild 1995, and Chateau Cos d' Estournel 1995. Our wine group with Mary Pisor pictured below.

During our Napa Wine Experience visits of 1997 through 2000 we hosted gala tasting dinners with the 'Undisccovered Dozen' emerging new wine producers to watch, featured in an article in Wine Spectator Magazine. Many of these producers released their inaugural vintage releases in or about the 1994 vintage. Those producers and winery visits included Plumpjack, David Arthur, Clark-Claudon, Robert Craig, Del Dotto, Elan,  Paradigm, Pride Vineyards, Snowden, Nils Venge and White Cottage and are featured on my winesite http://www.unwindwine.com. An complete index of my tasting notes of these wines over the years is on the site at this link to California Producers Index. These producers make up a foundation of our wine cellar collection even today. In many of these wines, we still have vertical selections of these wines, some dating back to those early release vintages. I'm missing one which will come to me at some point - I don't remember what I don't remember!