2005 Cabernet Sauvignon

In 2005 we were blessed with an above normal crop level here in the Napa Valley, taking Saddleback a full month to harvest all our Cabernet grapes. Fortunately, the quality was absolutely spectacular! The majority of the grapes come from the dry farmed 9.5 acres of Cabernet Sauvignon planted on the winery estate located one-third mile north of Oakville Cross Road on Money Rd. Our soils are of Pleasonton and Bale loam series with some spots of silt and gravel. Rootstock is Teleki 5C on a 6 x 12 ft. spacing. We enhanced our blend with 5% prime Cabernet grapes from Star Vineyard in Rutherford, 4% Petit Verdot, and 2% Cabernet Franc from Truchard Vineyard in Los Carneros.

HARVEST:
We handpicked 37 tons of grapes beginning mid-Oct in Oakville and Rutherford finishing mid-Nov in Los Carneros.
Average Sugar: 23.8 Brix
Acidity: 6.1 g/L
pH: 3.60

FERMENTATION AND AGING:
The fruit was sorted both in the vineyard and on the crushpad, then gently crushed into small fermenters. Here we left the juice fermenting on the skins for ten days after inoculation with cultured Montrachet yeast. The wine went through a combination of punch-downs and pump-overs twice daily during this timeframe. The wine was racked into 65% new French and American oak barrels and left to age for two years slowly going through native malo-lactic fermentation.

CHARACTERISTICS:
Wonderful, heady aromas of ripe dark cherries, spice rack, and cigar box are emitted from this wine’s fragrant bouquet. This full-bodied wine has opulent, jammy black fruit flavors layered over silky and supple tannins with an amazingly smooth lingering finish. A perfect accompaniment with grilled steak or roast beef.