Producer: Cliff Lede Vineyards - read about the Estate
	
Winemaker: Christopher Tynan
	
Region (AVA): Napa (Stags Leap District)
	
Blend:  80% Cabernet Sauvignon, 11% Merlot, 5% Cabernet Franc, 4% Petit Verdot
	
Vintage production: 4,314 cases
	
Winery location: Stag Leap District
	
Owner: Cliff Lede
	
First vintage: 2002
	
Drinking window: 2013-2033
 
About The Wine:
 
The 2010 vintage began with a wet winter that kept the soil moist into spring. The vines responded with moderate vigour and healthy canopies. The cool temperatures in the spring continued through harvest resulting in one of Napa Valley’s coolest vintages on record.
 
The below average temperatures slowed berry development and ripening by two to three weeks in most varieties resulting in full ripeness at lower sugar levels. Early season thinning lowered yields and allowed the grapes to achieve optimal ripeness, and careful canopy management protected the fruit from a couple of heat waves in late August and September. Most of the crop was harvested in mid-October during an intense two week period taking advantage of the warmth in October and before the early November rains.
 
The fruit was sourced from the hillside terraces of the Estate Poetry Vineyard, the Twin Peaks Vineyard estate surrounding the winery, and a few neighboring vineyards in the Stags Leap District. The wine is composed of small lots from the best blocks, representing a diverse range of carefully selected clones and rootstocks. From Poetry’s exposed, rocky terraces boasting volcanic origins, to the ancient riverbed alluvial soils of Twin Peaks, the breadth of contributing sites translates into a wine of impressive complexity.
 
Grapes were picked in the darkness of the early morning hours. The freshly-harvested fruit immediately underwent rigorous selection by a three-tiered sorting process, which included a cutting-edge optical sorter. Whole berries were gently delivered by gravity to tank using a crane system, minimizing disruption of berry integrity. Cold soaks lasted approximately seven days, and fermentations were managed via a combination of délestage, pumpovers, and punchdowns. 
 
Extended maceration ranging from four to five weeks fine-tuned our tannin profiles, allowing the team to perfect mouth feel and wine complexity. The wine was aged in French oak barrels, 80% of which were new, for twenty-one months.