Kelly Fleming Cabernet Sauvignon 750ml

2468137* 

$244.99 $208.99 price per bottle

Producer When Kelly Fleming purchased the 300-acre property in Calistoga that would become our winery’s home, the virgin land was unchartered territory. No grapes had ever been planted here, though the pedigree of neighboring vineyards, including the Eisele Vineyard, attested to the site’s potential. This is a warm area, with heat stored and reflected off the steep and rocky hillsides of the west-facing ravine. Yet the heat can be short-lived, as these same hillsides mean the sun rises later and sets earlier than on the valley floor. In summer, the temperature can swing as much as 50 degrees from day to night, allowing grapes to ripen fully, yet retain the acids that are crucial for elegance, structure and balance. In addition to grapes, our property is home to olive and fruit trees, flower and vegetable gardens, and an abundance of animals - both feral and tame. Of the 300 acres that comprise our property in Calistoga, only twelve are planted to wine grapes: three blocks devoted almost entirely to Cabernet Sauvignon. Eight acres were planted in 1999; four were established six years later. The natural differences between these blocks - the varying elevations, soils, slopes and exposures - are accentuated by viticultural techniques tailored to each, including pruning, trellising and irrigation. Even within the blocks, the variations are such that our vineyard is picked in up to ten different lots, vinted and barrel aged separately in our cave. These blocks, and the lots that derive from them, give our winemaker the tools she needs to make a multi-faceted and compelling single vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon. Making wine was not part of our plan in the beginning. But when we recognized the quality of grapes that grew here, we knew they deserved to be shaped into a wine of their own. It was the right way to honor the property. We broke ground in 2005, digging 7000 square feet of caves 220 feet into the hillside. It was pure rock and took two years to complete. Looking at the exposed surface of the cave now, you can see what makes this site so special. The kaleidoscope of compressed soil types - white volcanic ash, red clay, black mineral - mirrors the complexity of the wine this land yields. In 2010 we crushed our first grapes at the winery, a handsome, two-story * stone structure with a fermentation room tailored to the output of the vineyard, a professional kitchen, and intimate indoor and outdoor entertaining spaces. In its understatement and timelessness, one can see Kelly’s artistic background and tasteful touch: a working winery that appears to have been here for generations. After converting twelve acres of this wild canyon to Cabernet Sauvignon vines in 1999, the vast majority of the land remained as a blank slate. The estate held a great deal of opportunity, but today, much of the natural landscape we found was left to flourish untouched, while select pockets have been planted to olive trees, fig trees, organic gardens, and insectaries, which serve to keep our small ecosystem healthy and thriving. These endeavors have allowed us to produce small quantities of olive oil, honey, and the occasional batch of fig jam, if we can gather enough figs before our resident black bear reaches them! Three rescue donkeys also make their home among the ridges and meadows, both helping to clear out brush and scare off wandering coyotes. It has been thrilling to make use of the property in myriad ways, giving us even greater appreciation for what wonderful things the land can provide. Here in Napa we have a bounty of delicious food. When I found this land, I also discovered a few enormous fig trees along Simmon’s creek. We consume lots of warm figs in September and take some back to the kitchen to make into jams. Sometimes these figs top a pizza cooked in our wood burning stove, adding prosciutto & arugula with a drizzle of estate olive oil. Add in a glass of wine and you have a meal without stress to finish the day.