CABERNET SAUVIGNON HARVEST and Comparative Wine Tasting
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- Опубликовано: 31 май 2024
- In today’s video, Bob Paulinski, Master of Wine talks about his 2023 grape harvest trip to the Alexander Valley in Sonoma County. I spent a couple days at the Bellacana vineyard near Healdsburg. I was there for the late-night CS harvest and then the early morning arrival of the fruit to the winery. Over the years, I’ve worked harvests in France, Slovenia and Michigan. I’ll take you through my experience and then a tasting of two wines, a 2018 from the same hillside vineyard that I visited, along with a very different Alexander Valley version from valley floor fruit. I’ll then get into why the wine styles are very different from one another at the end of this video.
A few words on Alexander Valley, its at the northern end of Sonoma County, west of Napa Valley. It’s the largest AVA in Sonoma County with over 15,000 acres under vine. It’s a warmer region within Sonoma, where Cabernet Sauvignon is king, accounting for more than half of the wine coming from the region. Nearly everyone here produces one, with the best-known brands being Silver Oak and Jordan, the latter being supplied with fruit from the Bellacana Vineyard. There’s a host of other well-known wineries that are often prime candidates for cellaring. Bellacana produces small lots, so it won’t be easy to find, but check the link in the description below for details. There, I’ve also provided other Alexander Valley options to search out as well. Outside of the US, the availability will be limited, but some Alexander Valley wines are exported.
bellacanavineyards.com/visit-...
Key Alexander Valley Wineries - Cabernet Sauvignon Focus:
2019 Simi $25 (Good intro to the region, but I prefer the older vintages)
2021 Alexander Valley Vineyards Wetzel $30
2020 Hanna $34
2017 Reynoso Family Vineyards $45
2021 Soda Rock $45
2019 Jordan $55 (some international sales)
2019 Silver Oak $100 (some international sales)
The 2023 growing season in northern CA was much different than recent years. The winter brought much needed rain, then a chilly spring delayed green growth, along with less overall heat during the growing season. This pushed everything back. Veraison came a month later than typical. By its nature, Cabernet Sauvignon is a late ripening variety, but with 2023 it was nudged back even further than usual into late October, or even early November for some vineyards. When harvest finally came, the fruit was in excellent condition with good sugar levels and sound phenolic ripeness, along with higher than normal acidity levels.
Harvest took place on the 25th of October. The picking began at midnight under flood lights and continued to about 8am during the coolest hours of the day. It was a brisk night. The fruit is hand-harvested by picking crew that work quickly and methodically across the vineyard. Whole clusters are placed into shallow bins, then it’s transported to the nearby winery. This is a critical step in terms of protecting the fruit from oxidation. The individual grapes are tiny. The grape skins are tough, the seeds are brown, the interior pulp is clear along with a high grape skin to juice ratio that’ll provide foundation for the finished wine.
At daybreak, it was off to GRAND CRU custom crush to handle the newly arrived Cabernet fruit. It’s a modern facility that offers a place for small brands to make their wines. The fruit is at a staging area, ready to be fed onto a conveyer belt where leaves, twigs, poor condition fruit or any other MOG will be removed by hand. Overall, the fruit was in very good condition and there wasn’t much to remove. Next, the whole clusters are destemmed, the stems being discarded. The individual berries are moved along a vibrating rack into a catch bin soon to be readied for a several day cold soak for color extraction. Soon after, fermentation will start using indigenous yeasts. I had a great, but for now, this concluded my visit to Alexander Valley.
As for the difference with hillside versus valley floor, the latter tends to be richer, more nutrient rich soil producing rounder softer reds. Hillside vineyards tend to produce firmed structured wine with less pronounced fruit character. There are plenty of exceptions, but as a general rule it'll hold true.
#winetasting #winetime #sonoma #grapeharvest #cabernetsauvignon #wset #grapevines #winetravel #masterofwine #bobpaulinski #healdsburg
W❤W! That’s Perfectly Awesome! Cheers!🥂❤️✨
Thank you for the good word. Cheers! 🍷
My family grows Merlot in Alexander Valley. The ‘23 harvest was the highest yield, highest quality, latest harvest we’ve seen in quite some time. Very excited to see how the ‘23 reds are presenting in a few years time!
Good story with the harvest and no fire issues! 🍷
Thanks for the video, Bob. I would love to see more videos from you on Cali wines, including good values. Cheers!
Thank you Dmitri, I’m working on a best value Cabernet Sauvignon video, it’ll include a Cali wine region. 🍷
Great stuff. It’s so cool how you share how geology, geography and aspect/altitude can affect a wine. Maybe one of these days I’ll have a chance to work a harvest…. Cheers and thanks
Thanks for the good word. I’m glad you liked the video and thanks for the continued support. 🍷
Hello Bob
Many thanks for taking the time… and spending the effort to share with us your knowledge and experiences. It is always a pleasure to watch… and an insightful/ learning experience.
If you have few minutes, would very much appreciate a clarification on the utility/need to harvest at the cool of night? What are the benefits?
Thank you for the kind words. The benefit of harvesting at night is primarily an oxidation control matter. At night, the temps are cooler. As a result, the individual grapes are firmer. They can be picked and transported with less risk of being damaged. Damaged fruit is susceptible to oxidation which can require corrective measures at the winery, potentially compromising quality.
Informative video. Thanks for explaining the difference between hillside and valley floor. I've had a 2019 Fidelity Red from Goldschmidt Vineyards. It was a pretty good value for the price. I'm waiting to try a 2021 Estate Cab Franc from Alexander Valley Vineyards.
I’m glad you liked the video. I’ve known Nick Goldschmidt for years, he makes very good wines for the money. The Cab Franc should be a fun bottle. Cheers!
Nice drone footage, great content. Will look for Bellicana. Curious why night harvest is such a thing…
Yes, the drone footage is good. Bellacana will be tough to find, your best bet might be their website. Night harvesting allows for picking at the coolest hours of the day. Cool temps keep the grapes firm, reducing the risk of being damaged which leads to an increased oxidation risk. In this case, the fruit is picked and transported quickly to the winery where its handled early morning.
I bought the most wonderful Malvasia Bianca from Clos Du Bois winery in Alexander Valley a few years ago. It complemented Indian food wonderfully. Sadly they don’t produce it any more. On that note, would love some videos on food and wine pairings - especially vegetarian food :)
Thanks for commenting. Malvasia Bianca from Alexander Valley! Interesting. I’ve been thinking about a video on wine and food pairing. You’ve just given me an added nudge to do it. 👍
Napa Valley produces some great stuff, but I don’t collect too much of it because it is very expensive, and also because so many North American restaurants feature Napa almost exclusively on their lists, so I get my fill by merit of working in the US frequently.
Napa is expensive, no doubt about it. For me, Alexander Valley is the best of Sonoma.
I really would like to grasp that process about harvesting, fermentation and maturation that unfortunately I don't seem to get by simply studying a book. Next time we all should come with you Bob to pick up the grapes! 😂
Being there makes all the difference. A group harvest would be hilarious. 😂 The work pace of the picking crew is impressive. Serious cardio.
Write to wineries asking if you can volunteer. The more aptitude you demonstrate the more complicated jobs they will give you.
@@reestyfarts I'm heaped with work! Working a harvest is physically exhausting!
Punching down cabernet is like stirring Turkish coffee.
😂😂
Really nice footage. I might sign up for a harvest in Spain next season, but I get the feeling that most of the time if you're not someone in the wine trade you won't be taught very much there. Is it still instructive to pick the grapes as told, or is it done mostly for the experience of participating in the harvest as such?
Won't be able to find much serious Californian wine out here at an affordable price. Tough!
Thanks for the comments. I do it mostly for the experience, but there’s usually something learned along the way as well. Working a harvest in Spain would be different, especially with old bush pruned vines. Being hunched over for hours at a time would be a challenge. Cali wine is tough to find where you’re located, but maybe you’ll have a chance when you travel. Cheers. 🍷
Bob I will be in Livermore CA. Next fall. Is there a must see/taste winery there?
Brian, there are two big players in Livermore, Wente and Concannon, I suggest the former. Wente family owned, good people, nice wines. I’ve had some good wines from Retzlaff for a smaller source. Lots of very small artisanal wineries, some good, others not so much, most are a fun visits.
@@bobpaulinskimasterofwine7234 thank you
Very interesting. You sure as heck worked for this one. Thanks for doing it and sharing the experience. Any chance you could recommend a basic, lower price, alliable (Costco, Total Wine, Trader Joe's, Aldi) Cabernet Franc wine? Ever since one of your other videos, when I learned how Cabernet Sauvignon came to be, I've been meaning to try a Cab Franc, but have been hesitant to pull the trigger buying one (then I forgot about it). Thanks!
Hi Matthew, yes this video wore me out, but it was fun. As for CF options, I'm a big fan of Argentina. Mendoza is home to some of the best values for the variety. Look for Durigutti or Trivento, both will be around $15. I just picked up a Bougrier Chinon from Total. I've not yet tried it, but it's from a solid commercial source. It was just under $15.I hope that helps.
That is perfect, I'll probably pick up a bottle this weekend. Thanks for taking the time to reply! I'll thank you for the recommendation after I tried it 😅 . J/K, thank you and cheers.@@bobpaulinskimasterofwine7234
@@matthewbykowski2353Argentina produces excellent value CF. Buy a recent vintage, not more than a few years old.
Cool, will do. Thanks again.@@bobpaulinskimasterofwine7234
Thanks again for your help, you led me to a good bottle (I think), it was maybe just a little older than I was hoping to find. I ended up with a 2017 Zorzal (Mendoza) Eggo Franco Cabernet Franc, it was $15. It was full flavored and, no surprise, tasted like a Cabernet Sauvignon. What did surprise me was how thin it was. It didn’t have much body at all. Overall, I think it’s a very good wine that I was happy to try. That said, cabernet franc will remain my go-to. Thanks.@@bobpaulinskimasterofwine7234
I have always seen Silver Oak as over rated. It is the bottle you want the "Right" people to see you have. I have tried a number of Silver Oak Cabs and while they are not bad, they are not OMG this is the best ever. I have had a number of Eastern WA Cabs that I consider to be on par with Silver Oak, but 1/2 the price. There is no doubt that the Alexander valley is a fantastic area for wine. The problem is now too many people know about it.
With Silver Oak, it’s a style that you like or not. It’s a prestige label for many. As for WA, I’ve been there many times, likely going back again early next year. The quality has greatly improved over the last ten years or so. Thanks for commenting. 🍷
I have tried 2012 Silver Oak cab… not very impressive. fairly generic oaky red with good structure… great video though😅
Thank you for commenting. Sometimes it comes down to wine style. I’m glad you liked the video. Cheers. 🍷