Yao Ming Family Reserve Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon 2016

97 - Wine Advocate
95 - Jeb Dunnuck
94 - James Suckling
93 - Vinous

The 2016 growing season was an average yielding vintage in the Napa Valley due to set. We had good balance on the fruiting wire. This is a year that allowed the winemaker focus on harvest and bring out the essence of the vintage.

Wine Profile

Vineyard Notes 

Vineyards range from our ranch in Oakville to our bench land vineyards in Rutherford.  The clonal selection includes Cabernet Sauvignon 337, 4, and 6.  The soils are alluvial fans and volcanic rock at an elevation of 200–1800 feet above sea level. Barrels were hand selected by taste.

Winemaking

Fruit was rigorously hand-sorted and fully destemmed to small stainless steel tanks with light crushing. Cold soaks (5-7 days), warm fermentations between 29– 32°C (85-90°F), and moderate pumpovers twice each day. Total skin contact ranged from 19-34 days with all fermentations being carefully basket pressed and put to barrel on full fermentation lees for malolactic fermentation (ML).  Racking was twice per year with only one assemblage being done to allow the blend to “marry” in barrel.  Barrels for final blend were hand selected by taste. Native yeast and ML used with only small lots conducted using cultured Bordeaux isolates. Bottled without filtration.

Blend

97% Cabernet Sauvignon, 3% Petit Verdot.