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Appellation: |
Napa Valley, Spring Mountain District |
Vineyards: |
La Perla 53%, Miravalle 19%, Chevalier 18%, Alba 10% |
Varietals: |
Cabernet Sauvignon 90%, Merlot 10% |
Vines: |
Densely Planted Gobelet, 68% |
Aged: |
22 Months in French Oak Barrels |
Production: |
3,018 Cases |
Big Bottles: |
102 3-Liter Bottles, 50 6-Liter Bottles, 50 5-Liter Bottles |
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Winemaker Notes |
| The first vintage of the new millennium produced wines with vibrant color, fully developed flavors and great acidity. The thing that strikes us most about our 2000 Elivette Reserve is its elegant finish and the balance between all its flavor components. We are known for wines of power and strength. We also seek elegance and finesse. We found it in the 2000 Elivette. |
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The 2000 Vintage |
| While bud break occurred at the expected time, the growing season was generally cool. Midseason the valley experienced a brief heat spell bringing some of the highest recorded temperatures in Napa Valley history, with Calistoga registering 118°F. The average, valley-wide, was a blistering 113-114°F, though Spring Mountain was several degrees cooler.
A couple of days of rain in September gave the grapes the extra kick to keep hanging and ripening and allowing the full natural flavors to develop on the vine. In retrospect our only disappointment with the 2000 harvest was that it was too small. |
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Spring Mountain Estate |
| Elivette, the new name for our Reserve wine, is the ultimate viticultural and artistic expression of our Estate. Every vintage has certain lots of wine that demonstrate personality and quality that sets it apart. These are the lots destined to create Elivette, a wine that will showcase concentration, harmony, and elegance during its long life. |
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Spring Mountain Vineyard |
| Originally four individual historic Napa Valley properties, Miravalle, La Perla, Alba, and Chevalier have now been combined to create an 850 acre estate of forest and vineyard on the eastern slopes of Spring Mountain overlooking the small town of Saint Helena. Over 225 acres of the estate are planted to vine, creating 135 separate hillside vineyard blocks each with its own unique soil, exposure, and microclimate. The vineyard is planted in densities of 4,000 vines per acre and trained to the ancient gobelet form, a vertical trellising method that was invented in an earlier millennium by the Romans. |
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