2015 Leonardini Vyd Cabernet Sauvignon

ST. HELENA, NAPA VALLEY
$140.00 per bottle   /   $119.00 club price
ADD TO CART

94+ points, Wine Advocate

92 points, Wine Spectator

92 points, Decanter

90 points, Wine Enthusiast

This 2015 Leonardini Vineyard is a powerful example of Cabernet Sauvignon. It begins on the nose with fragrant dark black fruits, blackberries, violets, cassis, sweet vanillin, graphite, and cinnamon.  Its balance and mid-palate are most notable, providing long, plush tannins alongside its dense fruit character. On the palate, it delivers rich sweet black fruits, baked blackberry crisp, roasted walnuts, mixed berry jam, and cedar on the finish. The beautiful underlying tannin structure, complexity, and ample fruit will evolve over time and age gracefully for 10-15 years.

WINEMAKER NOTES

The Leonardini Vineyard Cabernet comes from one of our most prized vineyards and is the owner’s name-sake.  It is located on the western side of the valley floor in the St. Helena AVA, which is celebrated for its exceptional gravelly-loam soil. After being hand harvested and  de-stemmed, the fermentation was kept at 82°F for ideal extraction of aromas and flavors. The  wine was then aged in 50% new French oak barrels and 50% neutral French oak barrels for 26 months.   

 

THE VINTAGE

The 2015 vintage started with very little rainfall prior to bud break, enabling the vintage to be considered a drought year.  Drought years often lead to less vegetative growth and more focused fruit development, which is always a great thing for winemakers.  The Spring eventually brought about flowering, which was cooler than expected and in turn affected the fruit set and potential yields.  Even though yields in the vineyards were down, this provided the winemaking team with increased concentration of tannins and flavors from the grapes.  Summer was relatively warm and allowed the fruit to ripen at a steady pace and by September and October, the grapes were harvested at optimal ripeness. This 2015 wine was made from hand-selected grapes in a small block of clone 8 Cabernet Sauvignon from our Leonardini Vineyard and our Fawn Park Petit Verdot vineyard.

 

WINE FACTS

Winemaker: Jason Moulton 

Appellation: St. Helena, Leonardini Vineyard 

Blend: 100% Cabernet Sauvignon 

Alcohol:  14.8%