2014 | Dominus Estate | Napanook (Half Bottle)

It is to be enjoyed young whilst at its most exuberant but has enough fruit density, complexity and textural fibre to benefit from bottle age. 2014 is a wonderfully crafted wine redolent of cassis, forest floor, baking spices and violets.

Reviews:

• Wine Advocate: The 2014s, where the production of Napanook was only 2,200 cases and Dominus slightly more than the 2015 at 4,000 cases, was another early harvest, although somewhat later than 2015. The 2014 Napanook is a blend of 88% Cabernet Sauvignon, 3% Cabernet Franc and 9% Petit Verdot, showing notes of loamy earth, Christmas fruitcake, black cherry and blackcurrant fruit and underbrush in a supple, fragrant and lush heady style. It is another successful wine that should drink beautifully young and age nicely for up to 20 years.

• James Suckling: Gorgeous aromas of sweet tobacco, iodine and oysters. Blackcurrants, too. Subtle. Medium to full body, elegant and refined tannins, and yet there's also delicious, understated complexity. Savory. A joy to drink now, but this will improve with age.

Producer Information

Dominus Estate is a wine producer based just outside northern Yountville, in California's Napa Valley wine region. The winery makes one Napa's so-called cult Cabernets and its eponymous wine regulary receives critical acclaim. The owner, Christian Moueix, has had ownership – at least in part – since 1982, and ran the estate concurrently with his family wine business in Bordeaux until 2008. The estate is based around the Napanook vineyard, which is notable for being one of the first sites planted to grapes in the Napa Valley. George Yount, who gives his name to the Yountville appellation, set up a vineyard here in 1838 and, since then, the 50-hectare (124-acre) site has been owned by all manner of Napa stalwarts including John Daniel Jr, who is widely credited with bringing the Inglenook estate to world prominence. Moueix went into partnership in 1982 with Robin Lail and Marcia Smith, the daughters of John Daniel Jr, and, in 1995, took over as the sole owner. Since then, a second vineyard has been added to the Dominus portfolio, this time in Oakville. The Napanook vineyard sits on the edge of the Mayacamas Mountains, rising slightly into the hills to the west of the valley. The vineyard is dominated by Cabernet Sauvignon, although there are plantings of Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot. This makeup is reflected in Dominus Estate's flagship red wine, which is predominantly Cabernet Sauvignon with some Petit Verdot and Cabernet Franc – although the exact proportions depend on the vintage. Dominus Estate also makes an entry-level red wine, Othello, and a mid-level Cabernet, Napanook. The vineyard is dry-farmed both to conserve water and to control yields and thus the quality of the fruit. Moueix has also been a particular proponent of crop-thinning, having used it since the early 1970s at his most high-profile estate: Pétrus. This practice is said to improve the quality of the fruit as it improves the leaf-to-fruit ratio, aiding ripening. Dominus Estate is also notable for its winery, designed by the same Swiss architects that designed Beijing's Olympic Stadium. It is constructed from gabions filled with stones, which give the winery natural light as well as moderating Napa Valley's extremes of temperature.

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