Current releases
Olivia Brion Pinot Noir 2008
Heron Lake Vineyard, Wild Horse Valley
Ruby garnet in color – our darkest Pinot yet. Fat viscous legs indicating glycerol richness.
Dried rose petals and potpourri, hint of hickory bacon, clove, cardamom typical of our Pinot fruit emerging as the wine opens.
Plums and blackberries explode on the forepalate. Surprisingly grippy fine-grained tannins emerge midpalate. Great concentration, but slower to open in the glass than some vintages. This suggests long aging potential for this outstanding pinot!
The guiding principle for our winemaking is gentle fruit handling – not a seed broken! After fermentation and gentle pressing, the wine is transferred by gravity into French oak barrels below in the underground cellar to be aged sixteen months.
• Download the Olivia Brion Pinot Noir 2008 PDF fact sheet.
• Place an order for wine.
Olivia Brion Chardonnay 2009
Heron Lake Vineyard, Wild Horse Valley
Toasted hazelnuts and citrus blossoms. Bright mouth-watering acidity—makes my mouth smile immediately. Butterscotch, white peaches, kiwi and key lime, opening to crème brulee creaminess and richness. Expansive midpalate and the broad rich finish goes on and on.
Sixteen months of barrel fermentation and aging has added extra depth and potential longevity plus lovely vanillins. Not at all "overoaked" because of this extended barrel regime. Like the best Burgundies, we ferment this chardonnay in the special barrels made by Latour and Francois Frères. The integrity of the wine is maintained by bottling without filtration.
• Download the Olivia Brion Chardonnay 2009 PDF fact sheet.
• Place an order for wine.
Olivia Brion 69% Cabernet Sauvignon – 31% Cabernet Franc 2007
Napa Valley
The very ripe cab franc from Stagecoach vineyard seems to drive the wine – as complete and balanced as cab franc gets – with violets and other florals plus lots of very fine tannins starting at mid palate and continuing through the long finish. The Beckstoffer Vineyard X cabernet really fleshed out middle richness and added the classic "sense-of-soil" Rutherford Dust. Most surprising in nose and taste is the coco powder and mole sauce spice from the Ink Grade mountain cab and verve, focus, and cassis fruit from the Palladian Estate Vineyard.
Quite ripe, at 15.3% alcohol, the wine effortlessly carries it with completeness and complexity. The different vineyard lots were aged twenty-three months in 100% new French oak barrels of the highest quality, like Quintessence and Demptos, before I assembled the best barrels for the final blend. Bottled in 2009, the wine has had more than eighteen months of bottle development before being released – truly a great wine from a great vintage!
• Download the Olivia Brion 69% Cabernet Sauvignon – 31% Cabernet Franc 2007 PDF fact sheet.
• Place an order for wine.
Palladian Cabernet Sauvignon 2006
Meadowood Lane Vineyard, St. Helena
Six years of organic farming methods are really paying off in the fruit quality. We are carrying the banner toward wines with moderate alcohol with great balance and structure. The Palladian vineyard is across the road from the Napa Reserve vineyard and next to Meadowood Country Club. 475 cases produced, estate bottled.
Polished and refined. Tightly wound at first, gains depth and richness as it opens. Bright nose of cherry and black currants encircled by a hint of cigar-box cedar. Some delicate floral notes of violets from the cabernet franc influence. The palate is all cassis and kirsch with a little cocoa powder. The tannins are silky. Finishes long and clean – classical, balanced structure.
After careful hand sorting, and four to five days aqueous soak in one-ton bins, the whole berries are fermented cool (72 – 75°F) to preserve the fruit flavors. The cap is punched down every six hours to extract the desirable fine skin tannins and evaporate alcohol. Finished alcohol 13.9%. Pressing is very gentle, "one light, slow, squeeze". The wine is barreled down into French oak from several premium coopers for twenty-two to twenty-four months in our aging cave. Typically the wine is released after two years of additional bottle aging.
• Download the Palladian Cabernet Sauvignon 2006 PDF fact sheet.
• Place an order for wine.
Lord Nelson 'Victory' Fortified “Port-Style” Wine
Lord Nelson "Victory" is a dense yet polished vintage port-style fortified wine. THIS is my fruit bomb! Perfect with a chocolate and berry dessert (or maybe a good cigar) 1,200 half bottles produced
The main varietal in the blend is Syrah, which gives it great concentration and color. Cabernet Franc adds the mocha/cocoa, and Viognier adds the honeysuckle aromatics with hints of Meyer lemon peel. Full-bodied and medium sweet, with a beautiful density and a sweet fruity and fine tannic aftertaste. Balanced yet muscular.
This wine is produced in small amount only in the best vintages and when there is sufficient aged brandy, which I also distill. Made in the traditional 25% reserve method to insure consistency of style. Addition of the brandy to stop the fermentation must happen in the middle of the night with a secret ceremony! The finished alcohol is 20%. Great luck has been involved in making this special wine – truly a labor of love–it could easily outlive me!
• Download the Lord Nelson PDF fact sheet.
• Place an order for wine.
