2021 Cabernet Sauvignon
She’s lean and she’s mean, and I think I’m in love. With cocoa nibs, grapefruit pith, blood orange, black tea, and cumin on this very complex nose…. it opens to black plum, jam, star anise, and vanilla with time in the glass. This is not your grandmother’s Cabernet.
Pair with pomegranate and arugula salad, Bahn Mi, smoked brisket, or, I guess your grandmom since she really needs to come over to the wild side.
Wine Specifications
ABV
14.7%
Vintage
2021
Region
Santa Barbara County
Varietal
93% Cabernet Sauvignon, 5% Petit Verdot, 2% Merlot
Vineyard notes
2021 was a bit of a rollercoaster for the vineyard. After a cool and dry winter and spring, bud break started late in the spring of 2021. The relatively mild weather lasted until August when a series of heat waves hit. Fortunately, our Cabernet grapes were protected with a healthy vine canopy and attentive farming. Ripening stalled for a few weeks after the heat, but progressed enough for the fruit to be harvested in mid-October, just before the smoke from the Alisal Fire blew through our little valley.Production notes
The 2021 Cab Sauv is a blend of all four Cab blocks. All were harvested by hand, and fermented with native yeast in a variety of vessels. Block 7 was fermented in two Taransaud French oak foudres, Block 3 in closed rotary barrels, and Blocks 4 and 6 in stainless steel. All lots remained on the skins for about four weeks before pressing. Maturation was in 44% new French oak until blending and bottling in the summer of 2023.
CASES: 554
Picked
10/14/2021
First quarter moon
pressed
11/17/2021
Waning gibbous moon
racked
8/10/2022
Full moon
Bottled
7/11/2023
Third quarter moon
