During February of each year, hundreds of wineries in the Napa Valley hold a special auction for members of the trade, called Premiere Napa Valley. The wineries auction off special one-of-a-kind bottlings in five, ten, or twenty case lots. These are wines that they don't sell anywhere else, and they are crafted to be the best expressions of their wines they can possibly make; a Reserve's Reserve, if you will. These wines go only to the winning bidder, and this year, Hi-Time was lucky enough to wine this prized lot from Kenefick Ranch! This wine has its own special label, each bottle is individually numbered, each label is initialed by the winemaker, and only five cases were produced!
Kenefick Ranch is one of the "Crown Jewels" in Napa Valley's Calistoga AVA. The property is located off Picket Road next to other noteworthy vineyards such as Kelly Fleming, Hundred Acre, and Eisele. Kenefick Ranch has been a source for top-notch wineries such as Lewis, Dalla Valle, and Cade. This year, Kenefick has chosen to showcase Cabernet Sauvignon from their estate. Over the past 33 years, Kenefick Ranch has experimented with 14 clones of Cabernet on five different rootstocks. They feel that the two clones they selected for their Premiere lot - 15 and 169 - best express this effort to showcasing their vineyard's terroir.
Deep ruby in color with a beautiful magenta hue, this wine is expressive on the nose with notes of cigar box, violets, brown sugar, maraschino cherries, cinnamon, baking spice, cassis, and a touch of vanilla. It's full-bodied and juicy on the palate, but not too overpowering, expressing flavors of black cherry, black raspberry, bakers chocolate, and a touch of balsamic. While utterly drinkable and silky-smooth from the moment the cork is pulled, this wine will continue to open up over the course of a few hours, so a short time in the decanter will help to show this limited Cabernet's full potential.
Kenefick Ranch is one of the "Crown Jewels" in Napa Valley's Calistoga AVA. The property is located off Picket Road next to other noteworthy vineyards such as Kelly Fleming, Hundred Acre, and Eisele. Kenefick Ranch has been a source for top-notch wineries such as Lewis, Dalla Valle, and Cade. This year, Kenefick has chosen to showcase Cabernet Sauvignon from their estate. Over the past 33 years, Kenefick Ranch has experimented with 14 clones of Cabernet on five different rootstocks. They feel that the two clones they selected for their Premiere lot - 15 and 169 - best express this effort to showcasing their vineyard's terroir.
Deep ruby in color with a beautiful magenta hue, this wine is expressive on the nose with notes of cigar box, violets, brown sugar, maraschino cherries, cinnamon, baking spice, cassis, and a touch of vanilla. It's full-bodied and juicy on the palate, but not too overpowering, expressing flavors of black cherry, black raspberry, bakers chocolate, and a touch of balsamic. While utterly drinkable and silky-smooth from the moment the cork is pulled, this wine will continue to open up over the course of a few hours, so a short time in the decanter will help to show this limited Cabernet's full potential.
