Louis M. Martini Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon

This is Cabernet Sauvignon's older brother, as its grapes come from the very best vineyards in Napa Valley. Louis M. Martini, of Italian descent, left for San Francisco at the age of twelve to join his father. He had a wonderful childhood and returned to Italy to learn the winemaking trade. His father had instructed him to do so because he had already seen how easily Louis made wine. He graduated and gained some experience in Europe, after which he returned to his beloved California. His trip to California took place in 1922, and he immediately began working with his grape, Cabernet Sauvignon. In 1933, he established a winery in St. Helena, north of Napa, with the finest vineyards filled with Cabernet Sauvignon. Today, the wines are still made according to Louis M. Martini's principles.

The old vineyard in Napa Valley

The Napa Valley vineyard is spread across several premium vineyards, including Cypress Ranch Vineyard, Sun Lake, and Sage Canyon. This allows current winemaker Michael Eddy to bring the very best into the bottle. Incidentally, Michael Eddy is the first winemaker who is no longer a member of the family. However, he did spend a decade under the tutelage of Mike Martini. He truly knows better than anyone how Louis M. Martini wines should be. After long aging in the best environment for Cabernet Sauvignon, the bunches are harvested by hand. Each bunch from Napa Valley is inspected and crushed immediately upon arrival at Louis M. Martini. This red wine is aged for a total of 16 months in oak barrels, using both French and American oak. Yes, it's simply a gem of a wine!

Full and very powerful this Louis M. Martini Napa Valley

The Cabernet Sauvignon grapes from Napa Valley give the glass a deep, deep red color. With our noses hovering over the rim, we smell notes of cassis, sweet spices, and pipe tobacco. Later, as the wine loosens up in the glass, we also noted nuances of cedar and plum. We were already hooked from the first sip, noting notes of black fruit, cassis, dark chocolate, spices, vanilla, cedarwood, and so on. A true discovery, and to truly savor this wine, you'll need the entire evening!

As with many Napa Cabernets, a small addition of other grapes was used here as well. This results in the final blend:

91% Cabernet Sauvignon,
4% Petit Verdot,
3% Merlot,
1% Cabernet Franc,
1% Malbec