The Highland Springs Estate
The wines are produced by Northwest Wine Company located in McMinnville, Oregon. NW Wine Company is the brainchild of Laurent Montalieu, who has 25 years of experience in producing wines in Oregon, and has his own label, Solena Cellars. I met Laurent in 1997 when he was the winemaker for WillaKenzie Winery. Laurent Montalieu has a family connection back to the vineyards of the MEDOC in Bordeaux. His great grandfather, Joseph Montalieu, owned various vineyards in the MEDOC. Laurent is a 1987 graduate of the Institute of Oenology of Bordeaux. His résumé includes winemaking at the following facilities:
Chateau La Tour Blanche – Sauternes
Domaine Mumm – Napa
Bridgeview Vineyards – Oregon
WillaKenzie Vineyards – Oregon
Since being founded in 2003, NW Wine Company has grown to manage 55 vineyards in 5 AVA’s and produce wine from 15 varietals. The client list is small at 26 and comprises 50,000 cases of total production (9 liter cases). NW Wine Company is the incubator for small wineries and custom wine projects.
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Caymus has a signature style that is dark in color, with rich fruit and ripe tannins – as approachable in youth as in maturity. Since its founding in 1972, Caymus has become renowned as a consistent leader in the production of Napa Valley Cabernet. Grapes for this wine are farmed in a range of Napa’s sub-appellations – from Coombsville to Calistoga – with fruit from the valley floor creating lushness and the hillsides providing backbone. Diversification enables us to make the best possible wine in a given year, featuring layered, lush aromas and flavors, including cocoa, cassis and ripe berries.
Tenuta di Arceno Valadorna is made from 60% Merlot, 32% Cabernet Franc, 4% Cabernet Sauvignon, 4% Petit Verdot .
The first impression of the nose is earthy with notes of cypress, vanilla bean, and spice. There are deep fruit flavors of black cherries, plums and blueberries followed by pleasant hints of chocolate and dried rose petals. On the palate, the tannins are chewy and accompanied by lively acidity; contributing to a long finish dominated by flavors of dried figs and licorice. The 2016 Valadorna is a time bomb of joy that will stand the test of time and age well in the cellar if patience permits.
This Merlot-led blend is sourced primarily from the Valadorna and Capraia blocks, which produce the estate’s most complex and mineral-based expressions of this variety. The blocks are located within the cooler part of the estate, naturally irrigated by the stream that undulates through it, and feature sandy brown soils and lower yields than typical. These blocks are often the last Merlot blocks to ripen on the estate.
Review:
Solid and radiant in the glass it shows notes of pink grapefruit, flowering geraniums, pressed blueberries, plums and rosemary. There is more in the background in the brightness of the lemon, lime and bergamot notes. Full body, well-polymerized tannins that are decidedly vibrant and tense at the moment and an impressive long finish that will relax over time. Better from 2024.
-Raffaele Vecchione - WinesCritic.com 96 Points