Napa Valley’s 2013 vintage surpassed even the highly touted 2012 vintage in grape quality. A winter with very low rainfall was followed by a dry, warm spring and summer. These factors resulted in balanced vine canopies, good fruit set and small, concentrated grapes. Perfect weather throughout harvest fostered intense, beautifully balanced and expressive wines. “I believe Napa Valley’s 2013 vintage is the best of the past 10 years,” says Winemaker Trevor Durling. “Our 2013 Hewitt Cabernet Sauvignon is powerful and muscular, with great texture and density on the palate.” The expansive aromas and flavors exude sumptuous blackberry, Satsuma plum, black cherry and cassis expression, layered with nuances of bittersweet chocolate, rum raisin, roasted espresso bean and sun-warmed rose. There is also an elusive chaparral note that reminds us of an August hike in the golden California hills. This is truly a wine that speaks to both the personality of Hewitt Vineyard and the outstanding, warm and dry 2013 vintage. Hewitt Cabernet Sauvignon is very age-worthy, however, if you can’t wait to drink it, we suggest decanting to allow the favors to evolve and reveal their great complexity and elegance.
Varietal Composition: 98% Cabernet Sauvignon 2% Petit Verdot
Barrel Aging: 21 months 100% French oak 85% new barrels
Alcohol: 15.3%
Winemaker: Trevor Durling
95 Points - Robert Parker's, the Wine Advocate
This is a brilliant wine from this well-placed vineyard in Rutherford, sitting right on the so-called Rutherford Bench, with a history of vines having been planted there as far back as 1880. It is a big wine but shows no heat or hotness whatsoever. Dense purple to the rim, it offers a stunning nose of loamy soil, scorched earth, blackberry and black cherry with some allspice, clove and subtle oak. Hitting the palate, it’s clear the wine has great intensity, a full-bodied mouthfeel, superb richness and moderate tannin. A classic 2013 as well as a classic wine from Rutherford, it should be given 4-5 years of cellaring and drunk over the following 30 years.