Cabernet Sauvignon, Mount Veeder

Taub Family Vineyards traces its roots back four generations–mere days after the repeal of Prohibition. Wine has always been at the heart of the family's story. Marc D. Taub, raised with a profound reverence for winemaking, inherited this passion from his grandfather Marty, a pivotal figure in the wine industry since the early 1930s and later, his father David. In 2013, Marc acquired Heritance Vintners in Napa Valley, now transformed as Taub Family Vineyards. With their namesake, Marc and his son Jake look to explore Napa's most dynamic sub-appellations and single vineyards to build their own storied cabernet house, curating wines from some of the Valley's most esteemed sites.

The 2019 growing season began with abundant rainfall and recurring soil moisture. This set the stage for a long, warm summer with few extreme heat events. Classic cool, foggy mornings combined with a lengthy, mild finish to the season preserved fruit purity and elegance with abundant hang time teasing out great color, structure, and soft tannins. Yields were slightly less than average, with exceptional fruit quality typified by bright acidity and ample texture for vibrant and expressive wines. Grapes come from the Barchuk Vineyard in the Mt. Veeder AVA, planted in1996. Clone 7 on Rootstock 1103-P was used for this cabernet sauvignon. Deep, well drained soils of the Boomer Series are constructed of gravelly loam weathered from metavolcanic and basic igneous rocks.

Grapes are hand-harvested, destemmed, and hand-sorted. Cold soak lasts for 3–5 days, followed by approximately 14 days of fermentation with three daily pump-overs. Fermented to dry on skins with an additional 7–14 days extended maceration to optimize the flavor, mouthfeel, and tannin structure of the wine. Drained, pressed, and transferred to French oak barrels for malolactic fermentation and ageing. Aged for 22 months in 100% French oak (75% new).

Etched in aromas of sage, cedar and pencil shaving, this wine is robust and ripe, brawny and burly in style and approach, reflecting its Mt. Veeder source. The fruit is dark and broodingly rich. Thick layers of blackberry, black cherry, toffee and earthy tobacco framed within a foundation of firm, integrated tannin, and balanced power. Structured, age-worthy, and complex, the wine finishes on sustained savory notes of cardamom, clove, and freshly tilled earth.