2016 Ark Cabernet Sauvignon 1 MagnumArk
100 Points, JebDunnuck.com: "The 2016 Cabernet Sauvignon ARK Vineyard is largely cut from the same cloth and reveals a purple/ruby hue as well as a deep, profound bouquet of blue fruits, cassis, dried violets, Asian spices, vanilla-laced coffee, and a whiff of new leather. Complex, full-bodied, and magically textured, it packs loads of fruit and opulence yet stays flawlessly balanced, has silky tannins, no hard edges and a majestic, singular personality. As with the 2015, drink this thrilling wine any time over the coming 30+ years.", Jeb Dunnuck, 6/2/20
TASTING NOTES:
This is an amazingly deep, rich, blueberry, blackberry and mulberry scented and flavored wine with skyscraper-like texture, remarkable intensity, great purity, and the new oak is completely concealed by the lavish and extravagant amounts of fruit. The 2016 stands out for its combination of power, purity, sweetness of fruit and tannin, lavish concentration and impeccable harmony.
WINEMAKER NOTES:
The 2016 vintage was the beginning of the end of the drought in Napa Valley. The vines were finally given a break with close-to-normal amount of rain in the winter preceding the vintage. Overall, 2016 was cooler than 2014 & 2015, it was warm and dry, but without the massive spikes in temperature that challenged the previous two years. 2016 was the kind of year where even a blind squirrel can find a nut, so most wineries could coast along and make good wine. We don’t coast, so 2016 was an epic vintage for us, one for the ages.
VINEYARD NOTES:
The single estate vineyard ARK is located just outside St. Helena, California at the base of Howell Mountain. It was originally planted in the 1880s, but was sadly lost to Prohibition. It took us five years to rebuild; she is our pride and joy.
The ARK is comprised of nine different blocks of Cabernet Sauvignon, planted meter by meter in nine different volcanic soil strata. The vineyard stretches through a sixty-million-year time sequence: three ancient beach fronts, a prehistoric weapons quarry, and spans a 180-degree arc of the sun over its half-mile length.
Hot afternoon sun known to damage aromatics in the fruit (on the hottest days), is blocked by the shade of Glass Mountain (named for the rare obsidian rock found in the soil and for ancient weapons such as arrowheads) which rises to the western side of the ARK vineyard.
COOPERAGE:
Hundred Acre wines are aged for a minimum of 30 months in the finest, center cut French oak barrique. The stave wood is hand-selected for ultra-tight grain, then air dried for three years before being made into barrels.
- CountryUSA
- RegionNapa Valley
- AppellationNapa Valley