Wine & Spirits - Winter 2016 - 40

TOP 100 WINERIES 2016 XXXXXXXX E STATE Diamond Creek XXXXXXXX E STATE Dominus Founded: XXXX 1982 Founded: Winemaker/viticulturist: Tod Owner/winemaker/viticulturist: Mostero XXXXXXXXXXXX XXXXXXXXX Owner:owned: Christian Acres XXXMoueix Acres owned: 124XXXXXX Cases produced: Annualgrown: production: Estate 100%N/A Estate grown: Importer: Xxxxx100% Xxxxx, Xxxxx, XX Location:xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx.xxx Yountville, CA Website: Website: dominusestate.com Founded: Founded:1968 XXXX Winemaker/viticulturist: Phil Owner/winemaker/viticulturist: Steinschriber XXXXXXXXX XXXXXXXXXXXX Owner: Boots Brounstein Acres owned: XXX Acres owned: 79; 25 planted Cases produced: XXXXXX Annual Estate production: grown: 100%2,000 cases Estate grown: 100% Importer: Xxxxx Xxxxx, Xxxxx, XX Location: CA Website: Calistoga, xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx.xxx Website: diamondcreekvineyards.com Phil Xxxxxxx Steinschriber Xxxxxx Xxxxxxx Tod Mostero Xxxxxx The view from the tasting table at Diamond Creek Vineyards looks out over the vines of Red Rock Terrace, then across the creek to more vines on the white slope of Volcanic Hill. Gravelly Meadow is just upstream. These small vineyards, each with their own soil, exposure and distinct expression, consistently produce three of the greatest cabernets in the Napa Valley. Three Soils, Three Wines: Little has changed in that view since Al Brounstein hired Sergio Canchola to help him plant the vines in 1968. Brounstein made the first vintage in 1972, working with Jerry Luper. Brounstein had smuggled in the cuttings from two firstgrowth châteaux in Bordeaux, and had been fascinated by the differences in the parcels as he began to farm them. Brounstein's wife, Boots, recalls how Luper also recognized the different personalities in the wines and encouraged Al in his decision to keep them separate. From Artisanal to Polished: Longtime collectors of Diamond Creek cabernets will recognize the face of these three vineyards in the 2012s, even though the vineyards and cellar have undergone a significant evolution in 40 years. Phil Steinschriber, who has been making the wines here since 1991, helped Brounstein replant some of the blocks and led him away from a primitive artisanal approach toward a more polished style. "It was a big deal when we went to 100 percent new wood in the late 1990s. A big wine like this soaks up the new wood," he recalls, noting that he began to introduce some new oak in the second year of aging with the 2007 vintage. "Sometimes we need to add a little extra." A Stellar 40th: The 2012s transform their new oak and a moment of heat at the end of the vintage into something sexy and exotic-particularly the wine from the north-facing Red Rock Terrace, which is immediately luscious, even as it's cool and buzzing with energy. It's one of our 100 Best Wines of the Year. Gravelly Meadow is a deeper, more baritone cabernet from the only parcel that still has all of its original vines intact. And the south-facing Volcanic Hill produced a wine that may turn out to be the most dynamic of the three, a trumpet blast of sweet fruit, sleek and rich, ending with brisk, cool earthiness. -J.G. TOP-SCORING WINES 40 At the site where George Yount planted Napa Valley's first wine grapes in 1839, Christian Moueix has staked a claim to one of the most elegant, long-lived cabernets of the New World. New Eyes on a Historic Site: Christian Moueix, the Bordeaux négociant, was managing Château Pétrus in 1982 when he came to Napa scouting for vineyard land. He wanted a property he could dry farm, and Robert Mondavi put him in touch with John Daniel's daughters, who had held onto Napanook, a gentle rise in the western benchlands of Yountville, after the family sold Inglenook. Dominus started as a partnership, then Moueix took full control in 1995. He and his team have slowly replanted most of the vineyard, reorienting the vine rows to minimize direct sunlight on the grapes while also moving toward tighter spacing. "It was ten by twelve," says estate director Tod Mostero of the original vine spacing. "We moved to nine by six, then nine by five. And the latest is nine by four." Setting the Bar: The selection for Dominus and Napanook has been stricter since 2012, with 35 percent of production going to other projects-Othello and Carpe Diem-or getting sold off in bulk. Napanook now represents about 35 percent of the estate, mostly from the sunny side of the vine rows and the young vines. In 2013, it's juicy and linear, an accessible expression of a Napa Valley grand cru. The coolest, cleanest, most detailed fruit on the property goes to Dominus, the estate's flagship. Deep-Seated Freshness: Dominus grows on a wide alluvial fan, which Mostero describes as "rocks, gravel, sand, clay and silt off the slope-allowing the roots to go very deep." Those soils, and the deep-rooted vines, help account for the performance of Dominus through a drought that began in 2012. Farmed to capture fresh fruit without any superripeness, the 2012 Dominus is a savory cabernet, with youthful energy driving flavor detail through the finish. The 2013 has a different dimension of fruit flavor that is neither red nor black, heading in a purple direction with explosive energy. It may well turn out to be the longest-lived cabernet Dominus has produced. -J.G. TOP-SCORING WINES XX '12 96 'XX Diamond Xxxxxxxx Mtn. Xxxxxxx RedXxxxx Rock Terrace $XX (XX/XX) Cabernet $225 (12/15) XX '12 94 'XX Napa Xxxxxxxx Valley Xxxxxxx $199 (12/15) Xxxxx $XX (XX/XX) XX '12 94 'XX Diamond Xxxxxxxx Mtn. Xxxxxxx Gravelly XxxxxMeadow $XX (XX/XX) Cabernet $225 (12/15) XX '13 93 'XX Napa Xxxxxxxx Valley Xxxxxxx $299 (10/16) Xxxxx $XX (XX/XX) XX '12 92 'XX Diamond Xxxxxxxx Mtn. Xxxxxxx Volcanic XxxxxHill $XXCabernet (XX/XX) $225 (12/15) XX '13 91 'XX Napa Xxxxxxxx Valley Xxxxxxx Napanook Xxxxx$60 $XX(10/16) (XX/XX) WINE & SPIRITS BUYING GUIDE 2017 http://www.diamondcreekvineyards.com http://www.dominusestate.com

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Wine & Spirits - Winter 2016