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Uutiset
The 2019 Hershey is rich and inviting reflecting the vintage’s softer acidity. The aromas show off layers of black cherry, roasted plum, dark chocolate, and baking spice. At its core lies the classic Hershey minerality, lively acidity, and fine grain tannins. The entry is creamy and expands across the palate with flavors of plums, Montmorency cherry, and dark chocolate that meld with hints of roasted coffee bean, tobacco, and mountain sage. The wine is sumptuous now but will reward the serious collector for decades to come.
Viinin Kuvailu
The Story
The incredibly rocky, rhyolitic soils of this Howell Mountain site provide fruit with structure and depth, yet the cool climate produces a wine of restraint and vibrant acidity. An underlying minerality gives the wine a particularly distinctive character and provides another layer of complexity. The appellation has become a favorite of collectors who value the ageworthy capacity of wines from this elevation.
Wine Information
Our philosophy of minimal intervention in the vineyard and winery has resulted in a slow progression to dry farming. This forces the vines to look deeper for water, but also for nutrients and minerals. The results are balanced vines that produce small, intensely flavored berries with thick dark skins.
We began harvest for Cabernet Sauvignon on October 9th with SEE Clone from our 2008 plantings. The older vines were picked 9 and 12 days later in the third week of October. The fruit was fermented by native yeast in stainless steel and wood tanks. It macerated on skins for 21 and 26 days. A portion was fermented in barrels for 29 days before the free-run juice was drained directly to barrels for malolactic fermentation and aging. The individual lots were blended in the spring following the harvest and then aged in 225- and 500-liter barrels without racking until bottling.
Vuosikerta 2019
The winter and early spring brought ample rainfall to the Napa Valley. A dry April was followed by one of the wettest May’s on record, providing much needed hydration. The moist soils meant the vines had access to nutrients, especially potassium, resulting in full canopies and softer acidity in the wine. The cooler weather through mid-summer slowed shoot growth and delayed verasion by a few weeks. In mid-August the season heated up with 90+ temperatures that continued through the end of September. This allowed the vines to mature with sugar and color accumulation after the cool wet start to the season. A perfect October allowed the fruit to ripen to optimal maturity without the threat of rain or heat spikes. The 2019 wines reflect the vintage with opulent fruit, silky tannins, and a savory structured finish.