2014 M.Étain [ Sold Out ]

HARVEST NOTES
Vineyard Manager Michael Wolf:
The 2014 rains came late in the season, providing enough soil moisture for the vines to grow well. It was a warm vintage, overall, but without damaging heat spikes, which allowed the fruit to ripen slowly and completely. There was a bit of time to catch our collective breath after the August 24th earthquake, as the fruit continued to ripen evenly, in spite of the chaos. Harvest was accomplished over an extended period of time, beginning on 9/19 and wrapping up on 10/13. Thanks to the temperate weather, there was no sense of urgency about harvest timing or logistics. 2014 yields were near historical norms, with the younger blocks of the J.J. Cohn vineyard coming into their own, and performing very well. Throughout the property, maturity was very uniform, and overall fruit quality was exceptional.

TASTING NOTES
Winemaker Celia Welch writes of the 2014 M.Étain:
Lovely fresh raspberry notes float above base tones of sweet anise, vanilla, faint smokey notes and a hint of clove. Surprisingly supple at entry, this young Cabernet shows tremendous flow across a bright palate, with consistently full body throughout and a broad, satiny finish. Cocoa, dark cheery, and raspberry jam flavors linger along with the polished, silky tannins, leaving a sense of both bright fruit and of gravity.

This Cabernet (96% Cabernet Sauvignon, 4% Petit Verdot) was harvested entirely by hand from the J.J. Cohn Estate in Rutherford, Napa Valley, during a harvest period lasting from September 14 until October 14, 2014. The wines were fermented on skins for approximately four weeks, then gently drained, carefully pressed, and transferred to new French oak barrels for approximately 17 months. The wine was bottled in March, 2016. A total of 2100 cases were bottled without fining or filtration.