Beringer 'Reserve' Knights Valley Cabernet Sauvignon

Winery Notes
Beringer Vineyards has owned and farmed its Knights Valley vineyards since the mid-1960s, when the Beringer family recognized that the cobbled, rocky alluvial soils were a great place to grow high quality wine grapes. The Knights Valley designation was first used on a Beringer label in 1974. Beringer was instrumental in garnering official recognition for the area in 1983 as a premier wine growing region with the award of its own American Viticulture Area (AVA) designation.

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Tasting Notes
Deep garnet-ruby in color, the 2018 Knights Valley Reserve invites with deep aromas of black cherries and kirsch lifted with a touch of blue flowers and mint. Concentrated flavors of black currant, blackberries and cassis coat the palate with notes of warm spices, vanilla and mocha. This is a bold Cabernet richly textured with polished tannins, focused in crushed dark fruit, and underlain with a fine tension that extends the long, earthy finish.

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Vintage Notes
An exceptional vintage, the 2018 season started with a cool spring that delayed flowering but fruit set was fine and even. With few exceptions, Summer was moderate, sunny and dry without major heat spikes. The fine weather continued on through the Fall, allowing Cabernet Sauvignon to hang longer on the vine to develop flavors and achieve phenolic ripeness without additional sugar accumulation, resulting in beautiful structure, intense color, concentration of fruit and excellent balance in the wines. The grapes for this Cabernet were harvested October 25 – November 1st.

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Vineyard Notes
Located in a remote and bucolic location in Sonoma County just 17 miles north of the Beringer Napa winery, Knights Valley lies in the shadow of Mount St. Helena with hilly terrain that descends to rocky, alluvial soils where ancient rivers once ran. Warm during the day, cool at night, this well-draining site produces bold and richly structured reds with intense dark fruit.

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Winemaking Notes
Knights Valley Reserve is a barrel selection, a blend of the best vineyard lots in a given vintage. To maintain the unique characteristics of the different lots from varying areas of the vineyard, they are kept separate through vinification and aging, and only the most expressive are chosen for this Reserve bottling. Extended maceration created more dominant tannins, enhancing the lush mouthfeel of the blend while extracting a maximum of color, aromas and flavors. The 100% Cabernet Sauvignon wine was aged in small French Nevers oak barrels (51% percent new) for 20 months, enhancing the rich mouthfeel and structure.