Spottswoode

Spottswoode Estate Vineyard & Winery Visit 

plus the 30/40th Anniversary Tasting 

St. Helena, Napa Valley & New York City

Welcome to the beautiful Spottswoode Estate

     Spottswoode Estate not only produces some of my favorite wines, the Estate is probably my favorite site for a winery and vineyard. I always joke around with Lisa that one day I would like to buy it. Rather, more realistically of course, it would be a significant source of inspiration if a home in a wine region becomes a possibility. Another reality is that what the Novak family has built is so special, it literally is priceless. Until either of those days arrives, we'll have to settle on our winery visits and wonderful bottles of Spottswoode wines.

     The wines of Spottswoode are eternally classic and some of the most original in the wine world. One of my personal favorites, the Estate Cabernet Sauvignon, has been compared to some of the great Chateau in Margaux. However to this wine geek the Spottswoode Estate exceeds any comparison because of the unique virtues the Novak family and the Estate's history express in their wines. Passion, heritage, sustainability, terroir, consistency, elegance and balance are all words that come to mind when I think of Spottswoode.

One of the first views off the Spottswoode property as you enter through the gates

     Last year Lisa and I visited Spottswoode for the second time. Each visit has been different and special as the property gets situated to expanding its hosting capabilities. I had been purchasing Spottswoode on and off since the 2002 vintage, but our first visit was not until 2007. On that first visit we were able to try the inaugural 2005 vintage of the Lyndenhurst Cabernet Sauvignon poured in the old Kraft Winery stone barn that is one of the original "ghost wineries" of Napa Valley. The stone barn then and now is used to store the barrels aging the Spottswoode wines. On both tours we walked through the wine making facility, checking out the fermentation tanks, including the concrete eggs that ferment a percentage of their exceptional Sauvignon Blanc. Later we moved on to the vineyard and home across the street on the main Spottswoode property. As we stepped through the Spottswoode gate to the Estate home the first time the experience was remarkable, almost like stepping through time and space to days gone by. I could feel the heritage settle upon me just walking through the gates as my eyes took in the view of the towering trees, a remarkably manicured landscape and a gorgeously classic Victorian style home. I found it hard not to instantly fall in love with this special place.

Egg fermenters!

Concrete fermentation tanks

Steel fermentation tanks

A ghost winery, the Kraft stone barn

Inside the Kraft stone barn where the barrels rest

     On our first visit we tasted the 2004 Spottswoode Estate Cabernet Sauvignon in the gardens and poolside where the Novak's two friendly black Labrador Retrievers Riley and Murphy greeted us and were looking for some pet attention that we were glad to provide. On our second visit last year in 2012 we learned sadly that Murphy had passed on and Riley was the sole pup holding down the fort. On our last tour we tasted all of the wines in a tasting room in the home on the old Kraft property adjacent to the stone barn. The Kraft home is also Victorian and was refurbished to house the Spottswoode business offices, entertainment facility and now where the tastings take place.

The front porch

     Some light reading on the Spottswoode website and their great mailers provided me with a boatload of facts I pieced together for you in the following brief history of the Spottswoode Estate. The story of Spottswoode starts back in 1882 when the property was founded by George Schonewald originally naming it "Esmerelda" which was Spanish for Emerald. Not long after in 1884 Schonewald sold a plot to Frank Kraft who then started the Kraft Winery and erected the house the Spottswoode businesses currently reside and the majestic stone barn that is now where barrel aging takes place. The Novak family acquired the Kraft property in 1989 effectively re-uniting the original property. For a brief time the property changes hands twice, changing names from Esmerelda, briefly to Lyndenhurst and then to Spottswoode in 1901 by the new owner Mrs. Albert Spotts where it would remain in that family until the Novak family acquired the property in 1972. Over the next 10 years through learning, experimentation, and a lot of hard work the Novak family produced its first Cabernet Sauvignon with the 1982 vintage. As the years went by Spottswoode was led by some great winemakers. Starting with the great Tony Soter in 1982, tenures followed that included Pam Starr, Rosemary Cakebread and Jennifer Williams. In 1985, many, many years ahead of its time, Tony Soter implemented organic farming principles at Spottswoode that to this day have grown into modern organic and sustainable farming practices.

What a back yard!  The Spottswoode Vineyard

The archway over the gates leading into the Spottswoode property

     On our second visit all of the wine tasting was in an ornate dining room with a plethora of glasses and Spottswoode folks there to guide us through each wine of the current releases. I like this tasting format as it allows the taster to take notes and at the same time discuss the wines with the tasting participants and the winery team. The current winemaker Aron Weinkauf dropped in for a few minutes and we chatted for a while on the new Syrah fruit source for the Field Book wine, the recent vintages of the Estate Cabernet and the current one unfolding. 2012 will be a special vintage in Napa, possibly the best ever so stay tuned on how the 2012 wines develop. Here are our tasting notes from the most recent visit to Spottswoode in May of 2012.

2011 Sauvignon Blanc (Tasted May 2012) 
Composed of 65% Sauvignon Blanc and 35% Sauvignon Musque. 
Lemon, fresh cut grass and gooseberry aromas and flavors, with some fresh herb notes, and mineral notes with tight and clean acidity. There must be less new oak on this wine, in fact the oak is barely noticeable. Some steel, concrete egg and oak barrels are used to ferment this wine. The source of the fruit is 54% Napa Valley and 46% Sonoma Mountain.

The concrete eggs ferment and stir the wine on its lees inside the egg, as that is the idea of the shape. Natural fermentation is quite active with the fermenting juice jostling inside the fermenting device. In the concrete egg, the wine actually moves in a cycle inside the rounded egg shape, sort of like battonage in a barrel. But in this case there is no assistance needed by manually stirring the wine. The rounded shape of the egg moves the fermenting juice around the egg without any battonage, its self-propelled. In 2011 a technique used primarily in Beaujolais was utilized in this vintage of the initial fermentation of the Sauvignon for this vintage. That technique being "Carbonic Maceration" tends to brighten the fruit and freshen the wine to the benefit of the drinker with an earlier drinking window. Fun fact: carbonic maceration is a type of whole cluster fermentation inside the grape berry in a carbon dioxide environment within a sealed container. 

2009 Lyndenhurst Cabernet Sauvignon
Composed of 97% Cabernet Sauvignon and 3% Cabernet Franc 
Aromas and flavors of pencil lead, currants, cherry, vanilla and a dollop of sweet oak rise from the glass and spread across the palate. The palate is plush and generous, with sweet and fine tannins. This is a much earlier drinking wine and seems almost like it is made in a different style compared to the Estate Cabernet Sauvignon. The fruit for this wine is all Spottswoode Estate fruit. I love this fact about this second wine as it's rare to have this situation and I think the wine keeps getting better with each new vintage. I have to assume the fruit is from the younger juvenile vines and those parcels not producing complex enough fruit for the Estate wine. The wine is utterly delicious and flattering, more for immediate enjoyment as opposed to the complex and cerebral Estate wine. Aged for 20 months in French oak barrels, 50% are new barrels.

2009 Spottswoode Estate Cabernet Sauvignon 
95% Cabernet Sauvignon, 4% Cabernet Franc, 1% Petit Verdot 
The 2009 Estate Cabernet Sauvignon was drinking well, but seemed like it might have been going through a bit of bottle shock or starting to close down. The wine was great, but I felt like the layers or bands of flavor and composition of the wine felt more deliberate, like they had not fully integrated yet. Each layer was great, but this was just what can happen when you taste young wines, sometime they are shy and not showing their best. A few months later I would taste the 2009 again and would find out the wine had just not integrated fully yet as the wine was tasting like a superb young wine should.

The wine was not super showy this time around, so my notes are a little light, but we had currants and licorice, herbs and pain grille, with great aromatics for such a young wine. The tannins were perceptively fine, but don't be fooled the fruit was masking most of those young tannin. Ample acidity finished off this wine nicely. The one thing I thought was different was the color. The color grading of the wine seemed like it was maybe 5-10 years old as it had lighter red edges and a claret like rouge at the core.

- 30/40th Anniversary Tasting -

In mid-September 2012, the Spottswoode team marked the 30 year anniversary of making their own wine and 40 years of the Novak family living at the gorgeous Spottswoode estate on Madrona Avenue in St. Helena. A few older vintages of the Spottswoode Estate Cabernet Sauvignon were poured, as well as the current vintage releases of the entire portfolio. The whole family was there greeting and talking to their customers in a casual, walk around setting.

I highly recommend these wines if you are a fan of Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon as this wine is a benchmark for Napa. When I think of the top wines and wineries in Napa Spottswoode is always near the top for me. As you can tell Spottswoode is a personal favorite and I collect their wines in most years. The wines are for the most part available in the retail market, but they go fast so either sign up and get on their mailing list or if you see it at your local wine shop snap up a bottle. The estate Cabernet is an expensive wine, but one of the best money can buy. I would even venture to say it is a value when you compare it to the $300+ Napa Valley cult wines that will remain nameless in this particular article.Here are the wines and the tasting notes from the anniversary tasting last September 2012 in New York. 

2011 Spottswoode Sauvignon Blanc 
The sauvignon blanc has really come together nicely since I had it last. There is more stone fruit, the texture has gained a little weight, but the length seems to have extended. The aromatics are similar, but with a touch more citrus and peach over the grassy notes. If you like Sauvignon Blanc this is always one to check out.

2010 Field Book Rhone 
100% Syrah, Griffin's Lair Vineyard, Sonoma Coast 
A few years ago I became disenchanted with California Syrah, I felt I was not discovering anything new after a while. The last few years however I have had some of the best ever from California and see things getting better as the grape that was once heralded "the next Merlot" is understood more and planted in better vineyard sites for optimal fruit and terroir expression.

2010 is the first vintage the Field Book was made from the Griffin's Lair vineyard in the Petaluma Gap. Some of my favorite Syrah has come from this vineyard so was I was intrigued to say the least.  The color was dark, almost opaque but still maintaining a solid red appearance. Twirling the wine in my glass, appealing and typical Syrah notes of cracked pepper, meat, spice and earth rose from the glass. The palate also brought blueberries, licorice, more peppercorns, and roasted coffee beans. I was very impressed and would recommend this Syrah to any fan of Rhone wines.

2010 Lyndenhurst Cabernet Sauvignon 
97% Cabernet Sauvignon, 1.5% Cabernet Franc, 1.5% Petit Verdot
The Lyndernhurst Cabernet Sauvignon draws its name from one of the earlier names of the property before it was owned by the Spotts family in the early 20th century. The wine is alluring, sensual and immediately appealing from the generous fruit and more than ample, but silky structure. The fruit for the Lyndenhurst wine comes from the same vineyard as the Estate Spottswoode, but is likely the younger vines or those parcels of the vineyard that do not fit into the vision the winemaker has for the Estate wine. Only 40% of the oak used to age this wine in barrel is new, the rest are neutral oak.

The bouquet of the Lyndenhurst 2010 is full of black cherry, creme d'cassis, pencil shavings, and currants. This has a lot of fruit going on! The palate adds blueberries and some loam to go with the fine to medium tannins. This has a great finish, silky, fruit driven and long.

1994 Spottswoode Estate Cabernet Sauvignon (from Imperial 6.0L) 
To me tasting older vintages of fine wine is a real treat, one that many people do not get to experience or sometimes understand. I love all kinds of wine, but like anyone else I don't want all wines at all times to drink. I also understand that because I do not want it, it does not mean I do not like it. Some folks I overheard at this tasting event definitely did not subscribe to this based on their comments....whatever!

This was a fine wine and from what I could tell just past its apex, but still very enjoyable. The color was not bricking yet but was a light red at the edges. Aromas of tobacco, bay leaf, muddled and dried red fruits and herbs were observable. The palate was more dusty in texture with a medium to fine body. The finish was clean and fresh, with lean to lighter red fruits streaking the palate.

2004 Spottswoode Estate Cabernet Sauvignon 
97% Cabernet Sauvignon, 3% Cabernet Franc 
The 2004 seemed to be in a great drinking window, the wine showed all of the great traits of a young Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon. Showing the best of the evening, the 2004 Estate was a real treat and very accessible. Aged in French Oak barrels, 70% were new barrels. This wine had a luxurious nose, with great fruit expression and a wonderful vibrant, appealing and long finish.

The color of the 2004 Estate was a nice garnet core with red edges. The nose was giving off licorice, black cherry, cinnamon spice, and mint. The flavors fanned out over the palate with good oak integration. The tannins were a silky fine to medium grain. The 2004 Estate is a nice and complete wine and is drinking very well at this time, solid.

2009 Spottswoode Estate Cabernet Sauvignon 
95% Cabernet Sauvignon, 4% Cabernet Franc, 1% Petit Verdot 
The youngster of the Estate Cabernet Sauvignons being poured this evening was a familiar friend as this was my second tasting of this wine in 4 months (see above note). Tightly wound (as it should be), this was in a better place than when I had it a few months ago. The wine had come together nicely, it was super tight and rock solid to the core.

The core color was a deep red with vibrant, youthful red edges. Aromas and flavors of cherry, bakers chocolate, licorice, graphite, with cedar with spice notes. The palate was very concentrated with a persistent attack of fruit, a great mid-palate, and followed by medium grain, but ripe tannin. Aged in 100% French Oak, the 69% new oak is integrated perfectly into this wine. A long, fruit driven finish is fresh and immediately pulls you back for more. I will enjoy seeing how this wine develops over the years.

A bientot!

- Tom

A bientot!

2005 Realm Cellars Cabernet Sauvignon Farella Vineyard (USA, California, Napa Valley)

SUPER complex. SOLID structure.

Napa should have more wines of this fold. I would wait at least 1 or 2 more years, though its definitely drinking just fine with 2 hours of decanting.

Color: Dark red, ruby edges

Nose: Cherry, licorice, spicy currants, some terroir driven earthy notes.

Palate: Still tight, but showing a solid core of black cherry and licorice, a savory wine, with a cedar and mint notes.

Finish: A solid tannic structure frames the wine nicely: fine, but well defined, very precise. The acidity on the finish refreshes the palate.

I had all of the Realm 2005 wines and this was my favorite.

What this wine is NOT: Black as night, super sweet oaky nose, syrupy droopy fruit flavors with a chunky flat finish.

CHEERS!

The Sweet Spot of Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon $20-40

Napa Valley cabernet sauvignon more often than not is one of the most expensive wines in the marketplace today. The name “Napa Valley” alone garners a wine an air of prestige and quality amongst professional, connoisseur and novice wine drinkers and collectors. What contributes to these prices? Cult status? Barrel costs? Property and vineyard management costs? Marketing? The answers are all yes and of course for different wines the impact is at different levels. Just in time to stock up for the fall and the first half of winter, this blog entry will spotlight what I call The “Sweet Spot” of Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon. The sweet spot being those Napa Valley cabernet sauvignons priced in the neighborhood of $20-40. Not many well made, hand crafted, outstanding cabernets from Napa are in this price range, they are usually a lot higher in the $50-100 range. However, in this blog I will highlight those few that are consistently well made and in this “sweet spot” price range.

An Eagle vs. Chuck

Wines with a “Napa” name tag or source of origin range in price from over $1,000 for a single 750ml bottle at auction to as low as $2 at the grocery store. Rare and hard to find Napa Valley cabernet sauvignon “cult wines” fetch prices in the stratosphere at sometimes $200 from a winery allocation list to over $1,000 at auction for the likes of Screaming Eagle - the original "cult wine". Then there are “those” winemakers - usually monolithic corporation types that try to capture the notions of prestige and quality by using the name Napa Valley in bargain priced wines commonly priced around $5-10. Napa Ridge is one such commonly found wine that capitalizes on this practice. Not one drop of juice for the wine comes from Napa Valley. This same company (Bronco Wine Co.) is the creator of the famed, and not for any reason in quality but price, Two Buck Chuck - or as the label calls it Charles Shaw. This company recently lost a lawsuit filed against them to remove the name Napa from its wines since none of the fruit used to "manufacture" these wines comes from Napa Valley. An educated consumer or collector would know better, but a novice or casual wine drinker that has not been around the block a few times may not know better and think that since it has the name “Napa” in it, it must be good. The wine still sells well, mainly because of the cheap price tag and not because of any reason such as quality.

Apart from being some of my favorite wines, these are solid buys for immediate satisfaction, or will further reward the buyer with patience for cellaring the wines a few years to mellow out those sometimes brawny youthful tannins and allow the wine to further mature. Most of these wines have been in this price range for years and rarely have climbed drastically in price. Unless they are awarded 95+ points by Mr. Robert M. Parker’s Wine Advocate or the Wine Spectator’s James Laube, don't expect prices to rise too much.

On to the bottles…

2003 Provenance Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon Beckstoffer Tokalon Vineyard, Oakville $35

What a mouthful! Just wait till you taste it. New to the market this year is the 2003 Provenance Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon Beckstoffer Tokalon Vineyard, Oakville. Andy Beckstoffer owns the Tokalon vineyard and is part owner in Provenance. He sells most of the fruit from this vineyard to other wine makers who make their own Tokalon bottles such as Paul Hobbs ($175-300), Schrader ($125-250) and Behrens and Hitchcock ($150). Robert Mondavi also owns a large part of the To Kalon vineyard and it is bottled into the Reserve and the Oakville bottlings. In special years it will get its own labeling as a designated single vineyard. This beauty starts out brimming with cherry and cassis aromas with a hint of black olive and a slight whiff of fresh violet flowers. On the palate we have rich cherry fruit framed by vanilla and toasty oak notes imparted from the oak barrels. Fine grained, but youthful, tannins, coat the palate, wile the package is completed by a solid, clean finish. Nice structure, great concentration, yet slightly elegant. Drink now or hold for up to 10 years. But why wait? It’s drinking great now!

Worthy Sophia’s Cuvee $25

The next wine in the lineup, WORTHY Sophia’s Cuvee, has been solid in its first 3 years of production and continues to impress critics and connoisseurs alike. The nose starts with a deep concentration of cherry, vanilla and blackberry, accented ever so slightly by some spices, and some cedar. Silky smooth flavors of cherry and blackberry, earthy black tea, vanilla/sweet oak, and a touch of spice round out the flavors. Maybe lacking in acidity but full of ample, velvety tannin. Dark and well endowed with ripe tannin and fruit, Worthy is one of my favorite wines and I bought a case of the 2002. The 2003 consists of a blend of 77% Cabernet Sauvignon, 18% Cabernet Franc, and the remaining 5% is equal parts Merlot and Petit Verdot. This is the baby brother of the cult wine AXIOS from Napa Valley, made by the famed winemaker Bob Egelhoff. Axios, which in Greek means “Worthy” stands apart for slightly more structure, if not its better aging potential. This is due to the fact that Axios is made from the best fruit, while Worthy is the declassified Axios fruit not used in the premium bottling. Leftovers they are not. Such a word should not be used for such a well made wine. Drink now or hold for 5-8 years.

Chappellet Signature Cabernet Sauvignon $40

The Chappellet Signature Cabernet Sauvignons of 2002 and 2003 are some of the best wines for the money that I have had in the last 2 years. In fact the folks at Chappellet and many wine critics think that these are their best wines in years from Chappellet. I almost kicked myself for drinking the 2002 it was so good and perfectly made (I only bought 2 bottles). The 2003, though not as superb as the 2002, is by no means far behind in quality. Different wines structurally and from a flavor perspective, they are what California Cabernet Sauvignon are all about when well made. First, the 2002. I have to say this may be one of the best 2002’s I have tried. The nose starts with aromas of crème de cassis, a perfect amount of oak, a touch of chocolate and some minerals. On the palate, pure flavors of cherry, sage and plum cascade repeatedly with a long, solid 60 second finish. Finely grained tannins, ample acidity and the perfect amount of fruit define this beauty. Drink now if you dare or hold it for 12-15 years! In the 2003 we find more notes of chocolate and deeper notes of dark cherry and black fruits, as well as an ample waft of oak. Espresso and vanilla in addition to the cherry and black fruits round out the nose. The flavors roll in like a ripe bing cherry covered in sweet, oaky vanilla and chocolate. Spices, mocha, herbs and coffee round out the fruit and vanilla attack on the palate. The tannins are a bit more pronounced, yet big and round. Not as balanced as the 2002, drink the 2003 now decanted or hold for 8-12 years.

A short alphabetical list of extraordinary Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon priced $20-40:

- Buehler Napa Estate Cabernet Sauvignon $20-30 - always seems to get that 90 points from the WS
- Chappellet Signature Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon Pritchard Hill (solid, best in years - awesome, read above) $35-45
- Chimney Rock Stag’s Leap District Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon (always a reliable 88-94 pointer) $35-45
- Cross Barn by Paul Hobbs (see my first blog) $35-40
- Franciscan Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon (consistently delicious) $18-25
- Groth Napa Cabernet Sauvignon (classically made and has been around for years) $40
- Heitz Cellars Napa Cabernet Sauvignon (one of the originals) $25-35
- Honig Napa Cabernet Sauvignon $25-30
- Mount Eden Estate Bottled Santa Cruz Cabernet Sauvignon (not Napa but I HAD to include it) $27
- Mount Veeder Napa Cabernet Sauvignon Napanook Napa Red $35-40
- Pine Ridge Rutherford Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon $25-30
- Provenance Beckstoffer Oakville Tokalon Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon (awesome, read above) $30-35
- Robert Mondavi Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon (Mondavi is making their best wines in years) $17-25
- Robert Mondavi Oakville Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon $28-35
- Rombauer Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon $30-35
- Silverado Napa Cabernet Sauvignon (owned by Disney’s children) $30
- Stag's Leap Wine Cellars "Artemis" Napa Cabernet Sauvignon (a classic wine, elegent, refined, nicely structured, better with age too and includes 33% of the Fay wine that costs $75)
- St. Clement Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon (one of the best values in Napa) $35-40
- Whitehall Lane Winery Cabernet Sauvignon (consistently a 90+) $30-35
- Worthy Sophia’s Cuvee (excellent, read above) $25-30

These are all exciting wines drinking well now, but also have the stuffing to age a few years (5-12) and mature into a finely aged beauty. These are well crafted wines of personality, depth and complexity worth aging. 2004 seems to be a very uneven year with over-ripe, jammy wines being the hallmark trait of a hot vintage to watch out for. But the majority of 2004 Napa Cabernet from these makers will not hit the shelves until mid-2007. All of these wines are currently available for purchase and are in good supply, though some may take some effort online to find (www.wine-searcher.com). Some stores may have these priced above the $40 price point, but most can be found for under $40 or when bought by the case you save that extra 20%.

I encourage you to please add your own feedback, recommendations or experiences below!

Cheers!