Michael Klopka purchased the 150 acre estate in 1998 atop Diamond Mountain, but it wasn’t a palatial estate – even a “Diamond in the rough” was an understatement. It was a densely forested area, nearly inaccessible woodland tract that choked sunlight. It took a while to clear, and create 2 parcels (Cori and Sophie) totaling six acres of Bordeaux varietals. Most of the fruit is sold, but a special section is kept for the SVR wines – only 150 cases are produced! The first harvest was in 2004 (they sold it all to Coho for 10 years), and their Inaugural Summit Vine Ranch offering was the 2013 vintage. That said, a lot of progress has been made since!
FYI: Diamond Creek is next door to Michael’s SummitVine Ranch vineyard, and at this “low” price, you have yourself a real bargain from this mountaintop estate!
SummitVine 2018 Cabernet “Estate” Diamond Mountain District, Napa ValleyGGWC 89.99
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The “gentle” growing conditions and the ability to take advantage of more hang time provided the beautiful deep color to this vintage. Under Winemaker Brett Adams' care, the fruit had no issues during fermentation and the result is a wine with beautiful aromas of Allspice, Caramel, Blackberry and Lavender. This is a full-bodied wine with full, deep flavors that come to life with a little time in your glass. The color is fantastic; a deep, dark red inviting you to experience a combination of dark fruits such as blackberry, black currant, along with mocha, cedar and cigar-box, all supported by wonderfully plush tannins and our wonderful soft mouth feel. A powerful yet balanced wine.
Winery Notes: “The 2018 harvest ended on a high note with everyone talking about the incredible growing season we had and the superb fruit quality. SummitVine Ranch was no exception. There was good water in the ground from February rains to help support bud break and the push to bloom. We saw cooler than normal temperatures from Spring into the heart of summer, a nice reprieve from last year’s record heat, and the vines were never in the stress zone like we saw in 2017. Grapes were able to mature slowly and evenly and there was even talk associating 2018 with the 2011 vintage, where full ripening was the top concern. However, the great exposure to sun and the late season heat events allowed our fruit to mature beautifully and achieve full ripeness with lower than usual sugar accumulation. It truly seemed like a grape growers “perfect season” with nice fruit yields that could make age-worthy wines with great balance, deep color, beautiful fruit, supple tannins, lower alcohol.”
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Call 415-337-4083 or email frank@goldengatewinecellars.com for availability and priority allocation