Appellation St Helena Tasting

Jim Gallagher’s Notes

October 28, 2008

The third annual Appellation St. Helena tasting was held once again at the Rudd Center in St. Helena . Pam Simpson, of Chase Family Cellars and current President of the group, brought the meeting to order and gave a brief overview. Pat Garvey, Vintner/Vineyard Manager of Flora Springs, was designated to provide an overview of the 2005 growing season and some background on the Appellation itself. Pat’s familiarity with the project stemmed from his participation from the earliest period in which plans were put forth to establish the boundaries and basis for the Appellation.

Pat introduced and discussed several interesting viticultural concepts, such as “degree days,” “alluvial fans,” and “benchlands”. He also noted an important point of reference for growers in the Napa Valley, the pre and post phylloxera eras. The type of rootstock in the prephylloxera period was dominated by AxR rootstook with some St. George. The post period has witnessed the planting of many more types of rootstock and clones with names like 039-16. Another major change is the spacing. The pre-phylloxera period had spacing as large as 4 x 12 in which large trucks could be driven through the vineyards. Now 4 x 6 spacings are common and it is not uncommon that standard vineyard machines have trouble getting through. The older emitters used to water were less accurate and dispensed larger quanties of water than was necessary. The use of pesticides were typical, whereas now the use of some are outlawed and most are trending toward organic and sustainable farming practices.

One concerned observation offered by Garvey is that he suspects that the current rootstock, while highly suited for specific vineyards, will not age as well as older root stocks. He reported that vines are becoming vulnerable to nematods at a younger age, and that vines are showing dehydration at younger age levels.

As to the distinction of the various areas within the Napa Valley, Gravey cites the alluvial fans as a major contributing factor. Paradoxically, alluvial fans also serve to mask differences when they have consist of many of the same elements. Stay tuned.

Vintner	Description	Rate
Anomaly Vineyards 2005 Cabernet Sauvignon St. Helena 14.7% al. $75.00	Medium red, light purple edge; a bouquet of cherry, caramel, light chocolate & toast; medium body, superb fruit, good acid-tannin balance; excellent finish: dry, long, luscious aftertaste, 3-6 years.	90
Casa Nuestra Winery 2005 Cabernet Sauvignon St. Helena—Estate 14.49% al. $55.00	Medium red, light purple; bouquet of raspberry, earth & toast; medium body, superb fruit, good acid-tannin balance; excellent finish: rich, long, lush aftertaste, finesse style, 2-5 years.	90
Charnu Winery 2005 Cabernet Sauvignon St Helena 14.7% al. $75.00	Medium red, purple edge; bouquet of cherry, light chocolate, light mineral; medium body, superb fruit, good acid-tannin balance; excellent finish: long, luscious aftertaste, 3-6 years	90
Crocker & Starr 2005 Cabernet Sauvignon St Helena—Estate ?? al. $90.00	Medium dark red, purple edge; bouquet of rich raspberry, cassis, chocolate and toast; medium light body, superb fruit, good acid-tannin balance; superb finish: rich, long, luscious aftertaste—lovely, 2-6 years.	94
Duckhorn Vineyards 2005 Cabernet Sauvignon Patzimaro Vineyard 14.5% al. $95.00	Medium dark red, purple edge; bouquet of peppermint, spice & toast; medium body, superb fruit, good acid-tannin balance; excellent finish, rich, long, lush aftertaste; robust style, 4-8 years	89
Ehlers Estate 2005 Cabernet Sauvignon St. Helena—Estate 14.7% al. $95.00	Medium dark red, purple edge; bouquet of strawberry, cotton candy, earth and lots of toast; medium body, superb fruit, good acid-tannin balance; superb finish, rich, long, luscious aftertaste—elegant, 2-6 years	94
Flora Springs Winery 2005 Cabernet Sauvignon St. Helena—Komes Ranch 14.6% al $100	Medium dark red, light purple; bouquet of light cherry, spice, nutmeg & toast; medium body, superb fruit, good acid-tannin balance; superb finish: rich, long, luscious aftertaste, robust style, lots of barrel char, 5-10 years	91
Hall Wines 2005 Cabernet Sauvignon Napa 14.5% al. $100.00	Medium dark red, purple edge; bouquet of raspberry, chocolate, spice, earth, mineral; medium light body, superb fruit, good acid-tannin balance; excellent finish, long, slightly thin aftertaste, light style, 2-4 years.	88
Jaffe Estate 2005 Cabernet Sauvignon St. Helena—Estate 14.5% al. $58.00	Medium dark red, purple edge; bouquet of berry, strong spice & toast; medium body, superb fruit, good acid-tannin balance; excellent finish: medium length, lush aftertaste, 2-4 years.	87
Parry Cellars 2005 Cabernet Sauvignon St. Helena—Estate 13.5% al. $60.00	Medium red, purple; bouquet of cherry, spice & toast; medium light body, excellent fruit, good acid-tannin balance; excellent finish: long, lush aftertaste, 2-3 years	87
Raymond Vineyards 2005 Cabernet Sauvignon St. Helena—Estate 14.49% al. $60.00	Medium red, purple; bouquet of cherry, light chocolate, spice & toast; medium light body, excellent fruit, good acid-tannin balance; excellent finish: long, lush aftertaste, 2-5 years	89
Rockledge Vineyards 2005 Cabernet Sauvignon “The Rocks” Rockledge Vineyards 15.2% al. $60.00	Dark red, purple edge; bouquet of rich, raspberry, blueberry, spice, cinnamon & toast; medium body, superb fruit, good acid-tannin balance; superb finish: rich, long, luscious aftertaste, robust style, 4-14 years	93
Salvestrin 2005 Cabernet Sauvignon Salvestrin Estate Vineyard 14.8% al. $58.00	Dark red, purple edge; bouquet of blueberry, earth, truffle and light toast; medium body, superb fruit, good acid-tannin balance; superb finish: rich, long, luscious aftertaste—lovely mouth feel, 3-8 years.	94
Spottswoode Estate 2005 Cabernet Sauvignon Spottswoode Estate Vyd 14.3% al. $130.00	Very dark red, purple edge; bouquet of concentrated cherries, lots of chocolate, light earth, spice & toast; medium body, superb fruit, lots of tannins—balanced; superb finish: rich, long, luscious aftertaste, lovely mouth feel, 3-8 years.	95
Titus Vineyards 2005 Cabernet Sauvignon Titus Estate Vineyards 14.5% al. $41.00	Dark red, purple edge; bouquet of blackberry, earth, mineral and light toast; medium body, superb fruit, good acid-tannin balance; superb finish: rich, long, luscious aftertaste—lovely, 3-8 years	93
Vineyard 29 2005 Cabernet Sauvignon St. Helena—Aida 14.8% al. $175.00	Dark red, purple edge; bouquet of berry, earth, mineral, hints of barnyard & toast; medium light body, superb fruit, good acid-tannin balance; superb finish: rich long luscious aftertaste; potential velours, 3-8 years.	92
Whitehall Lane Winery 2005 Cabernet Sauvignon St. Helena 14.5% al. $60.00	Dark red, purple edge; bouquet of cherry, chocolate, spice & toast; medium light body, superb fruit, good acid-tannin balance; superb finish: rich, long, luscious aftertaste, finesse style, 2-5 years.	93
Whitehall Lane Winery 2005 Cabernet Sauvignon St. Helena—Leonardini 14.5% al. $100.00	Dark red, purple edge; bouquet of cherry, chocolate, spice, nutmeg & toast; medium body, superb fruit, good acid-tannin balance; superb finish: rich, long, luscious aftertaste—lovely, robust style, 5-10 years.	96
Wolf Family Vineyards 2005 Cabernet Sauvignon St. Helena—Estate 14.69% al. $75.00	Medium red, purple edge; bouquet of strawberry, wheat & light toast; medium light body, good fruit, lots of acid; fair finish: long, mildly astringent aftertaste, lots of barrel char—bitter.	80
Corison Winery 2005 Cabernet Sauvignon St. Helena—Kronos Alcohol ?? $125.00	Medium red, purple edge; bouquet of cherry, spice, earth & light toast;  medium light body, excellent fruit, good acid-tannin balance; excellent finish: rich, long, lush aftertaste.  4-6 years	91