V Madrone Cabernet Sauvignon St. Helena Napa Valley 2009
“That's what I do. I drink and I know things.” --Tyrion Lannister
NAPA CABERNET lovers, collectors, infatuates, aficianados, it is time to get out of your chair/bed/couch/office/etc., scan this email uber-fast, and GRAB a few of these --- perfectly aged, OVER 60% OFF, rich, spicy St. Helena Cabernet! What a find! 2009 vintage!
We reference the quote above because this is one of those “I know a guy who knows a guy who knows a guy with a little extra wine to sell” stories --- we’d NEVER even know about this special stash if we didn’t live here. Once we had a bottle in our hot little hands...well, we bought every bottle they had (though that is BARELY enough for a regular offer…). And it’s a cool story! Once a “ghost winery” just north of St. Helena, V Madrone’s history begins in the late 1880s, when, along with other German contemporaries such as Charles Krug, the Hersch family made wine on this spot. After Prohibition (oooooh, that word just sends a frisson of terror into our spines) it became a popular “country” resort for some years until being abandoned. New owners the Tilleys resurrected it and started making a bit of wine in 2007. Since THEN, it has been acquired by AXR Winery (which is made by rockstar Jean Hoefliger). WHEW. Anyway, let us regale about the actual wine!!
DARK! Nose is poppin’ with cedar and blackberry jam, cinnamon spice and spiced plums...all of that rushes into your mouth, too, with a bit of dark chocolate liqueur and rich, round texture. PERFECT right this moment with a decade of age on it --- it’s complete and harmonious and still amazingly youthful and powerful. THE PRICE! Wackiness.
Super-limited...grab it while we got it….
Technical Details
Country: United StatesRegion: California
Appellation: Napa Valley
Varietal: Cabernet Sauvignon
Alcohol: 14.40%
About The Producer
Before settlers moved into the Napa Valley in the 1830’s and 1840’s, the area surrounding the V Madrone winery and vineyard was home to the Wappo tribe. In 1883 August and Frederika Hersch acquired the property and built a Victorian house and winery at the location of V Madrone. A front-page travelogue written by the editor of the St. Helena Star in 1887, described the Hersches’ “Fine Country Life” in the late 19th century.
Contemporaries of Charles Krug, and other German immigrants of the era, the Hersches produced up to 20,000 gallons of wine yearly at what was then called the August Hersch Winery. Claret was produced and large quantities were shipped to New York customers. In 1894 August Hersch passed prematurely and shortly thereafter the winery and its cooperage were sold and several owners later the winery was lost to history in the years following Prohibition.
In the early 20th Century the property was transformed into a popular lodge and restaurant which became widely known in the 1930’s and 1940’s as “The Madrones” named after the then numerous twisted red bark Madrone trees located in the area. Following their ownership, the property was owned by several families until Chris and Pauline Tilley acquired it in 2001. The Tilley’s planted the 3.5-acre estate Cabernet Sauvignon vineyard in 2002, following extensive review of soil type, neighboring vineyard analysis, climate, water source and runoff and other “terroir” factors. In 2004, thanks to the diligence of renowned local historical researcher, John Kelly, the lost legacy of August Hersch was rediscovered and the Tilley’s learned that the property was eligible to become a winery again. In 2007 V Madrone Cellars was declared a Napa County Historical Landmark, and on December 6, 2008, on the 75th anniversary of the Repeal of Prohibition V Madrone was opened for business.
The name “V Madrone” combines the legacy of the 19th century vineyard and the 20th century lodge.
Pairing Suggestions
Beef, Lamb, Game (deer, venison), Mature and hard cheese,
Poultry
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