The 1997 Cabernet Sauvignon is 100% varietal Cabernet
Sauvignon. The wine was aged for 26 months in new
small American oak barrels. A dark red ruby color,
the aroma is complex, full of black cherries, crushed
violets, nutmeg and a hint of mint. This is a Cabernet
anchored by a firm structure yet with few of the astringent
tannins often associated with robust mountain wine.
Packed in the center with deep Cabernet fruit, the
wine finishes with a long flourish of fruit and oak
seamlessly combined. A mouthful now, there is little
doubt the wine will expand and develop as it matures.
The wine is estate bottled from grapes grown entirely
on our property. Our steep mountain vineyards are
all dry-farmed: this centuries-old tradition means
there is no supplemental irrigation for the vineyard
-- only what nature provides -- so the vines come
into balance with nature by sending their roots deep
into the soil, allowing the vines to mature their
fruit naturally. We think this provides for the best
quality grapes, although it means a smaller yield
of grapes from the vineyard.
There will be some sediment on the
cork or at the bottom of the bottle because Smith-Madrone
Cabernet Sauvignon wines are neither fined nor filtered.
