2016 Beaulieu Vineyard Georges de Latour Private Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon Napa

Tasting Notes

The 2016 Georges de Latour Private Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon is bursting with a bouquet of cassis, blueberry, blackberry, violet and wild sage, exhibiting the extraordinary concentration, depth and elegance of this superior vintage. Full-bodied and rich on the palate with lingering flavors of dark blackberry, root spice, chocolate and molasses supported by perfectly balanced acidity which adds length, juiciness and freshness to an everlasting finish. Plush “Rutherford Dust” tannins support the ever-expansive palate, while seamlessly integrating with the full-bodied texture, crafting a wine that shows grace, ease and approachability now, but with underlying power and structure that will keep this wine alive for decades to come. Well integrated notes of vanilla and toasted oak spices - from aging in new French oak barrels - heighten the aromas and dance on the lengthy finish. To enjoy this wine at its full potential, we recommend at least five years of bottle aging; however, if you can’t wait, decant before serving.

Vineyard Note

We hand selected grapes from the finest Cabernet Sauvignon vines from the western bench of the Rutherford AVA in our iconic BV Ranches No. 1 and No. 2, originally planted by Georges de Latour in the early 1900s. We focused on clonal selections (6, 4, 169, 5197, 7 and 8), which yield small berries with the high skin-to-juice ratio needed to make intense, long-lived wines. The fruit was handpicked and optically sorted once it arrived to the winery in order to ensure the highest quality selection. These chosen vines are deeply rooted in the well-draining alluvial fan soils of Rutherford, considered one of the finest regions of Napa Valley for Cabernet Sauvignon.

Vintage Note

The extended drought was beginning to cause real concern as the 2016 growing season kicked off, but some welcomed winter rain hinted at the relief to come. After a relatively dry January we enjoyed significant rainfall in February, along with mild temperatures. Bud break was early, but was slowed by heavy April showers. While still early by historical standards, picking began about a week later than 2015, right around Labor Day, and continued at a leisurely pace, allowing the grapes to reach full flavor maturity. A traditionally sized harvest followed the lighter showing of 2015, and the extended mild season helped to balance the acids and add complexity to the layers of flavors. Considered a perfect harvest and a winemaker’s dream vintage, conditions were perfect for producing a Cabernet with beautiful fruit as well as tremendous concentration of flavors, highly saturated color, and layers of complexity.