Nose
Warm aromas from a dark fruit galette of plum and blackberry, gently wrapped in a waft of rose petals, resonate in the mouth.
Palate
Neither opulent nor heavy, but revealing lively concentration and intensity, this wine exemplifies the savoriness of this unique growing season -- a special profile that is unlikely to be repeated. The texture of this wine is soft, with an intriguing long-lived finish that reveals this wine's subtle complexity and harmony.
Growing Conditions
Seavey's 13th vintage of estate-produced Caravina Cabernet, the 2011, was made from grapes sourced from a unique tapestry of steep hillside blocks from the vineyard. The selected blocks were notable for their intense and youthful fruit with supple tannins. The 2011 vintage was challenging as it was marked by wet and cool weather that began in the winter and continued through mid-June, and then picked up again in mid-October. Our steep hillsides allowed us extended hang time and we harvested into early November, carefully handpicking our hillside blocks in sequential rolling harvests starting at the top and working down. Multiple small lots resulted that were then separately vinified and aged.
Bottling
May 2013
Winemaking
Winemaking followed classic Bordeaux methods with whole-berry fermentation. In the cool of the early morning harvest, grapes were promptly destemmed and the berries were gently transferred into fermentation tanks. In order to carefully manage the tannins and resultant wine texture, our grapes are neither crushed nor run through a pump.
Aging
19 months 100% French Oak (50% new)
