• 2012 Cabernet Sauvignon
    Mendocino
    • (750 ml) Sold Out!
    • (1.5 L Magnum) Sold Out!
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Navarro's last release of Cabernet Sauvignon was the 2010 vintage. 2011 was a miserable vintage with early rains followed by cool weather; difficult conditions for late-ripening varieties like Cabernet Sauvignon. We've been purchasing Cab from Berry Vineyards for over a decade now; we love the fruit harvested from the steep hillsides of the "Rattlesnake Canyon" block, farmed under the diligent eye of Ed Berry. On our frequent trips to his vineyard during the 2011 harvest, we noted how slowly the Cabernet was ripening. Ed phoned us in late October. The Cabernet wasn't up to the quality that Ed likes to deliver so he refused to sell us the grapes.

Berry's Rattlesnake Canyon Cabernet Vineyard. [below] It's hard to capture the steepness of this hill, but we're out of breath when we reach the upper vines. Oh yes, we do have to watch out for snakes.

[above] Ed Berry during harvest. Nothing makes a grape grower happier than harvesting the fruit they've spent a year's work producing.


We tried to discuss this with Ed but he wasn't budging; the grapes simply weren't up to his standards. No wonder we like dealing with the Berry family. The following vintage was more benevolent and Ed's 2012 Cabernet proved deliciously ripe. The fruit was destemmed into five ton open-top fermentors where we pushed down the cap by hand several times a day. After two weeks, the must was pressed and the juice racked to French oak barrels to age for 22 months followed by a two year repose in the bottle. This is an old fashioned Cab style, slimmed down from the modern, plush style of warmer regions: elegant, herbaceous with a touch of roasted peppers and chocolate. Gold Medal winner.

Specifications
  • Harvested: Oct. 08 to 11, 2012
  • Sugars at harvest: 25.0° Brix
  • Bottled: Aug. 29, 2014
  • Cases produced: 1069
  • Alcohol: 14.2%
  • Titratable acidity: 6.6 g/L
  • pH: 3.81