Trione 2016 Alexander Valley Cabernet Sauvignon Block 21
Once again Mother Nature has provided Sonoma County another vintage year for growers and winemakers. 2016 was by many measures an exceptional year to grow grapes. The season started early as did the previous year. The crop was slightly larger than 2015 but excellent quality. It was an early harvest season, beginning mid-August and finishing up by the end of September, another record year here at Trione Vineyards and Winery.
Retail: $69
Cases produced: 1,206 six-packs
Winemaking
This wine is a classic Bordeaux-blend of 78% Cabernet Sauvignon, 10% Malbec, 8% Merlot, and 2% each of Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot. The 2016 growing season was moderate, thus promoting slow ripening and full flavor development. We hand-harvested and fermented each varietal separately, then moved the wines to barrel where they aged twelve months. Once we determined our blend, we returned the wine to barrel for an additional twelve months, to ‘marry’ the varietals. We used tight grained French oak barrels (40% new) from coopers Quintessence, Sylvain and Bossuet.
Tasting Notes
The Trione 2016 Block 21 Cabernet Sauvignon is deep, dark, and foreboding. The wine is rich with black currant and dark chocolate aromas and flavors. Inhale, close your eyes and envision an old saddle, favorite wallet or baseball glove, those rustic leather notes are prominent. The structure is tight but has length and verbosity. This wine is age worthy and will continue to develop for 10 years and beyond. Cheers!
