Cakebread Benchland Select Cabernet Sauvignon(2002)

the amount of water required by the vines at critical junctures throughout the season.

Vineyards:

The grapes for our Napa Valley Benchland Select Cabernet Sauvignon, which in 2002 was blended with 14% Malbec, come from vineyards in Oakville and Rutherford that lie on Napa's western benchlands, with 50% issuing from Cakebread Cellars' estate vineyards. The eastern exposures of these gently sloping, well-shaded hillside vineyards allow the grapes to mature at a slow, even pace, which results in wines with optimal color, fragrance and flavor intensity. In 2002, we harvested the fruit at full ripeness between September 16th and October 8th.

Winemaking:

After the grapes were crushed, the "must" (unfermented juice and skins) was cold soaked in tank for two days to enhance color and flavor extraction. Once fermentation begins, the temperature is carefully monitored and adjusted to control the rate of fermentation, as well as keeping favorable conditions for the yeast. The "cap" of skins that forms at the top of the tank is dispersed throughout the fermenting juice for optimal tannin extraction during a procedure called "pumpover" (sprinkling juice over the cap). Another technique called "rack and return" where the juice is drained and returned back over the cap thoroughly macerates juice and skins and helps to soften tannins. The winemaker tastes the wine daily to assess tannin levels, wine texture and mouthfeel. When the wine shows good fruit intensity, and is balanced with ripe tannin, the wine is gently drawn off of the skins as "freerun". The "freerun" was transferred to French oak barrels, of which 55% are new, where it aged 20 months prior to bottling in August 2004.    (hide)