Growing Conditions

The 2014 vintage offered an ideal growing season. Although California’s drought brought another dry winter, the growing season started with a warm, dry spring and relatively early bud break. Summer was mild and consistent with even, warm temperatures throughout. Knights Valley often sees greater fluctuation in temperature than Napa Valley, with intensely warm days that cool off dramatically in the evening. The 2014 growing season was very even with no brutal heat spikes. Warm days with plenty of sunshine and cool evenings allowed for excellent ripening, phenolic and flavor development in the grapes.

Overall, it was a very high-quality Cabernet Sauvignon crop. Knights Valley was first acquired by Beringer in 1961, and to this day is a place of rustic and unspoiled beauty stretching for miles. Located just 17 miles north of the winery in Sonoma County, it still has a bucolic feel—miles of rolling hills that meander down into a rocky, alluvial valley floor where a grand river used to run. Everything about the place gives one a sense of its uniqueness, including the wines it yields. The Knights Valley’s rocky terrain, the growth and evolution of the vineyards and the unique blocks within the 600 acres in which Beringer has farmed for decades makes this a truly magnificent growing site. Grapes for the 2014 Knights Valley Reserve were harvested between September 17th and October 10th.