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	BLEND & GRAPE SOURCES: 80% Cabernet Sauvignon, 18% Merlot, 2% Petit Verdot. 100% Napa Valley. WINEMAKING DATA: Grapes were harvested from October 17 - 30, at an average 23.8° Brix, fermented in stainless steel tanks, then aged 20 months in a combination of new and two-year-old French oak barrels before being blended and bottled in June, 2000. After dealing with the formidable growing conditions of the 1998 vintage, I am happy to report that success, through careful selection, was achieved. The 1998 Cabernet Sauvignon is developing into a beautifully proportioned wine offering blackberry, roast coffee and chocolate aromas, and layered fruit flavors with supportive tannins that lead to a long, balanced finish. WINEMAKING QUOTES: "If the 1998 harvest in California yields some sumptuous wines — as it now appears it will — much of the credit is due to modern viticultural ingenuity. As the last grapes came off the vines for Harvest '98, California winemakers . . . can look back on 1998 as a year of floods, torrential winter rains, a damp, downright chilly spring and summer. About all that was missing were an earthquake and a hurricane. " Robert M. Parker, Jr.s' The Wine Advocate. 12-23-00
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