River’s Cuvée
Sage Ridge Vineyard, Napa Valley, 2025
River’s Cuvée is our first Napa Valley wine, made in tiny quantities from Sage Ridge Vineyard high in the eastern mountains above Lake Hennessey. It is difficult ground to farm and an extraordinary place to grow Cabernet Sauvignon. There will never be much of it.
2025 Winemaker’s Note
Intense and bold Napa Valley Mountain Cabernet Sauvignon at its best. I remember Robert Parker referring to a wine as a “dry Port”. This would qualify. That level of intensity of dark fruit is stunning. With ZERO hints of any herbaceousness or green bell pepper - which I can’t stand in Cabernet. The tannins are so soft and well-integrated that we see no reason to hold all of the barrels back any longer. So plush. So rich. So pure. Such beautifully ripe fruit. We need to get this in bottle so that you can experience what this wine has to offer right now. I’m over the moon for this wine.
Wine Details
- Variety / Blend
- Cabernet Sauvignon
- Harvested
- 10/12/2025
- Clones
- 7, 337
- Brix at Harvest
- 28.7
- Alcohol
- 15.50%
- pH
- 3.76
- Glucose/Fructose
- 1.3 g/lt
- Cases Produced
- 100
Winemaking
Processing: Destemmed and Crushed to T-Bin Fermenters (3/4 ton).
Pre-Fermentation Additions: SO2 (70ppm), ColorPro (80ppm), 6.5% Water, D254 Yeast, ML Prime Bacteria, Fermaid-K.
Fermentation: 28 Days in Fermenter.
Barrel Aging: Pressed to New Seguin Moreau Missouri Oak Barrels (Medium Toast+ with Toasted Heads).
Bottled: September 9, 2026