2015 Spottswoode Estate Cabernet Sauvignon
The 2015 Spottswoode Estate Cabernet is fresh and complex, a beautiful reflection of its warm, low-yielding vintage—balancing classic Spottswoode elegance with plush tannins and concentrated fruit.
The growing season began with a dry winter and mild weather which segued into one of the coolest Mays on record. This impacted bloom and fruit set, and contributed to significantly lower yields. The early summer months were relatively temperate and ripening moved along at a moderate pace, which then picked up significantly in the late summer when we experienced several heat events. Shade cloth, overhead misting, targeted irrigations, and our vines’ natural canopies protected our fruit and preserved the freshness that we so prize in our grapes and wines. In September, there was more heat and we picked at a slightly higher Brix than normal for us, thereby respecting the character of the growing season to create wines that authentically tell the story of each vintage. Because the yields were low and harvest was spread out over two weeks, we were able to fine-tune our picking decisions. Our optical sorter again worked beautifully, ensuring that only perfectly ripened fruit made it into our wines.
Winemaker Notes: Opaque deep purple. Packed. Lifted and perfumey. Voluptuous, with a great deal of youthful intensity, demonstrating primary blue and black fruit characters. An enticing potpourri of bakery aromas—chocolate-covered cherries, caramel, spice, coffee bean, boysenberry cream, black cherry, vanilla, crème brûlée, with hints of bay leaf and tobacco, and wonderful underlying minerality. Amazing balance, long finish, structured tannins. Built for aging. We are very excited about this highly anticipated vintage!
Fact Sheet
- SOURCE OF GRAPES
Spottswoode Estate Vineyard
Organically farmed since 1985 - APPELLATION
St. Helena, Napa Valley - OAK PROFILE
Aged 20 months
French oak barrels (new 60%)
