2008 Meritage

Unlike the majority of our wines that are single-vineyard, this wine is a blend of choice lots from several of our prime estate vineyards. We hand select barrels of Cabernet from our Central Park West Vineyard in St. Helena, our Cloud’s Nest Vineyard on Mt. Veeder and our Mario’s Vineyard surrounding the winery in St. Helena; Merlot from our Vista Montone Vineyard in Southern Napa; and Petit Verdot and Cabernet Franc from our Central Park West Vineyard in St. Helena.

2008 Growing Season The year began with below average winter rainfall, early bud break and potentially damaging spring frost. During bloom we had hot temperatures and high winds thus resulting in poor berry set. Although these factors decreased our yields, we benefited from loose medium sized clusters and Mother Nature doing the thinning for us. Summer conditions were overall mild, except for two major heat spikes at the end of the summer. Fortunately as all our vineyards are estate, we pick our vineyards in stages, often a few rows at a time, allowing for optimal maturity.

“This is my favorite wine to make because, like having all the crayons in the box, it lets me paint the prettiest picture. Having an incredible arsenal of vineyards at my disposal enables me to make a wine with layers and layers of aromas and flavors. Cabernet is the backbone, Merlot contributes to the mid-palate and the aromatics, Petit Verdot adds color and floral aromatics and Cabernet Franc elongates the finish.” -Mario Monticelli