HL Vineyards & Two Old Dogs Cabernet

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Melinda Hudson
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2011 2015 HL Vineyards & Two Old Dogs Cabernet Groundhog s Day, 2017

This year we invited representatives from vineyard management to

1 HL Vineyards & Two Old Dogs Cabernet Groundhog s Day, 2017 Our annual tasting seems to grow each year! This year we invited representatives from vineyard management to winemaking, social media to compliance, and assorted friends and professionals who make our team so complete!

2 Winemaker Michael Trujillo brought all the wines into perspective by reflecting on his 25 years working with fruit from Herb Lamb Vineyard. These wines are amazing in their consistency. They reflect the combination of inconsistency of soils and exposure and diversity of aspect. There is something about this vineyard that is so unique and distinct in each vintage the cooler perimeter makes one kind of wine (Two Old Dogs), the heart of the vineyard another (HL and HL Reserve). It s a joy to work with this fruit and all the people dedicated to farming and creating these wines. The following is a compilation of comments from everyone present. Two Old Dogs Cabernet Sauvignon 2011 Two Old Dogs The much maligned 2011 vintage has lots of redeemable features. Because of the coolness of the vintage and late-season rains, we had a hard time getting our fruit fully ripe, more akin to Napa Valley vintages in the 70 s when grapes were picked at lower sugars. This wine shows the effects of the cooler vintage, but not in a bad way. It s softer and more feminine. There is not a lot of extract but it is still very well built. The last Two Old Dogs wine with a cork. Graceful and elegant, with a nice spice. It s a little herbal, but in a great way. Drink now and enjoy! 2012 Two Old Dogs

3 It s a juicer, smoother Cabernet than the Lush, and shows the wood well, with a little herbaceousness. It is missing the bright fruit and high tones of a plusher wine, but shows the effects of the warmer growing season and the first of the drought years. There s a sweetness on the palate, with the dried fruit and cranberry/currant flavors predominant in this vineyard. This should last another 4-6 years Two Old Dogs This wine shows the typical blueberry/cranberry, red and blue fruit of the vineyard. It has a great acid and lovely layers of rich fruit, with woody notes and spicy notes. It s got a dusty interior with a youthful brightness. There is lots of vivid red fruit in the palate, yet great depth and extraction followed by a delightful finish. Hold/drink for another 5-8 years Two Old Dogs There was a lot more oak influence on the 2014 vintage, and it shows beautifully in the palate. The blueberry, fresh and dried red fruits really shine in this wine, with hints of herbs and licorice and a lot of baking spice in the nose. It has a soft, approachable palate with great structure and balance. So tasty and approachable! Hold/drink until Two Old Dogs barrel sample This was a smaller yielding vintage, with a little higher ph and lower acid. It has a bit of fatness and a little more oak influence.

4 But the fruit just shines in this wine and it should be a real keeper. To be bottled summer HL Cabernet Sauvignon 2011 HL Although the wettest vintage on record for the Napa Valley, for Bordeaux, this would be a ripe vintage! On the nose there are sweet tobacco, leather, rustic, herbal, toasted graham cracker and dried red fruit notes. This is a wine that you could sip all night, or enjoy and would be gone in an hour. Not a powerhouse by any means, but a powerhouse for the 2011 vintage! It is singing when everyone wants to call it a bad vintage. The fruit is fresh and shows rhubarb, raspberry, currant and cranberry. It is a real dichotomy light, smooth and complex at the same time; easy drinking but very decadent and rich. Pair with wild game or a leg of lamb. Drink or hold until HL There s a little cola and caramel on the nose, but in the mouth it s big and very fruit forward. It has a deep color with more extraction from the warmer vintage. Dense and not as fruit-forward as some vintages with a little more rum-raisin, fig and tobacco in the palate. There is a lingering finish of dried cherry, licorice and black fruit, making it taste more mature than it is. Drink or hold until 2022.

5 2013 HL There is more freshness and complexity in this wine, showing more of the red fruit character of raspberry and cherry. There is a drying, dusty character highlighted by dried cranberry and currant fruit. This is a classic vintage, a wine that will easily age for the next 10 years. A rock star vintage. Re-visit the wine in your cellar in 4-5 years to really enjoy it HL (This wine is scheduled to be released later in 2017) Absolutely exquisite! This is a perfect wine lean, crisp, fruity with rich blackberry and red fruits dominating, and the signature smell of dried fruits and herbs from this vineyard. One of the best of the current vintages. It s chalky without being astringent, with elegant tannins on top of a lot of new oak. Very approachable, feminine and fruit forward. As it matures in the bottle, it will become more seamless, showing more of the pure fruit from this iconic vineyard. Drink and hold for 10+ years HL Reserve Chosen from the best 2 barrels, there is a dusty cocoa character, with toasty, currant, licorice, red and blue fruit dominating. It is a very smooth wine, but with more texture in the mouth. It hangs and floats on the palate. It has great depth, but lots of life and should offer a decade of enjoyment to the lucky few who get a bottle!

6 2015 HL barrel sample To be bottled summer of These wines just keep getting better and better! We experimented with barrel fermentation this year, and blended some into the top wines. After a big crop in 2014, we had a much smaller set in But the extraction was exceptional, giving these wines a breadth and fullness, coupled by more new oak. Typical dried red and blue fruits and tobacco shine in the mouth. What can I say? My 93 year old mother would give it 100 points every year!

Tasting Notes of Selected Older Vintages by Robert Bath M.S.

Tasting Notes of Selected Older Vintages by Robert Bath M.S. 1979 Cabernet Sauvignon (Old Label) Varietal: Cabernet Sauvignon 22 Months in French Oak Opaque red with some browning on the rim. Ripe dark