2011 Herb Lamb Estate Cabernet Sauvignon

Winemaking Notes:

The 2011 HL Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon is a restrained vintage in terms of ripeness and alcohol. In the nose, there are red-fruit characters of dried cherry, currant and cranberry, with nutty and vanillin notes. In the mouth, the red fruits predominate, featuring red and black cherry with notes of plum, tobacco, cinnamon and spice. Hints of vanilla and roasted coffee linger with cherry and cocoa.

Winemaker Michael Trujillo says “2011 gave us pretty wines as
opposed to powerful, overwhelming wines. They are fresh, clean and complex with focused acidity and lower pH, but lots of varietal expression. It was a very challenging vintage - a winemaker’s vintage. But it’s a sleeper vintage that will definitely improve with aeration or a year or two in the bottle.”

Vintage Notes

The 2011 vintage was the coolest and wettest on record; with the cold, damp spring and summer setting back the development of the vines two weeks or more. Unseasonable rainstorms came in June, August and again in September. In the vineyards, we dropped maturing bunches several times to thin the crop level and assure that what was left would fully ripen. We hoped for an extended Indian summer, but the constant early October rains pulled the final plug for any hope of extended hang-time, forcing us to harvest with less than ideal fruit maturity. In retrospect, we picked at sugar levels between 22.5 and 24 Brix, more reminiscent to the wines made in the 1980s than the more recent trends.

Technical Data:

Alcohol: 14.4% Barrels: 80% new French oak Appellation: Napa Valley Case production: 300 Vineyard: Herb Lamb Vineyard