For the second year in a row the Wine Enthusiast has acknowledged our efforts; this time with a 91 rating for our 2003 cabernet (the WE gave our 2002 a 90 rating). We also succeeded in getting our wine placed on numerous wine lists around the country, in part as a result of our wonderful and eye-opening 4200 mile driving trip through the Southwest.

We bottled our 2004 Cabernet Sauvignon in July with three very significant outcomes. First, because we are at the mercy of Mother Nature and Bacchus and we can only process what they and our vineyard provide, we produced only 146 cases. Second, the lower than average yield resulted in our 2004 cabernet being a more intense wine, with more robust flavors than our two earlier vintages. However, the highly integrated fruit, alcohol and tannic structure still reflect our signature elegance. We have, from day one, endeavored to make our wine in a style that was more elegant and food friendly than those powerful and bold cabernets that receive high acclaim from many wine writers/ critics, but are difficult to pair with food.

The third fortuitous outcome from the small production is that the blend for our 2004 cabernet at which we arrived with Jason Fisher, our winemaker, includes only 2% of our estate grown Cabernet Franc. This allowed us, for the first time, to bottle our Cabernet Franc separately. Our 100% Cabernet Franc is a true example of a Right Bank Bordeaux (without the merlot) but we have only fifteen cases available.