Description
Pride Mountain Vineyards, Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon MAGNUM
Jim and Carolyn Pride purchased what would become Pride Mountain Vineyards in 1989; previously, the property was known as the Summit Ranch, situated at a crest in the Mayacamas range not far from other high-elevation icons like Smith-Madrone and Spring Mountain Vineyards. Wines had been made at Summit Ranch as far back as the 1890s, but Prohibition turned the place into one of Napa’s many “ghost wineries,” the ruins of which are still found on the property today. Climbing up to about 2,000 feet above the valley floor and covering some 85 acres of undulating vineyards, the Pride Mountain estate is the kind of special, secluded place that, once you’ve seen it, turns you into a lifetime customer.
Because the vineyards straddle the Napa/Sonoma County line, this flagship Cabernet is always labeled with the percentages of fruit used from either side. This one, as is visible on the label, is 53% Napa, 43% Sonoma, and 100% “mountain” through and through. The soils are volcanic loam, and the elevation here is such that the vines sit above the “fog line,” meaning they experience less temperature variation than the valley floor below. The lows aren’t as low and the highs aren’t as high, and as such the vine’s metabolism never shuts down; it’s a more even, and, overall, a cooler, climate, and this combined with the intense UV light at elevation results in grapes with good natural acidity levels but great concentration. They develop thick skins rich in the anthocyanins that give “mountain” Cabernets their robust character.
In all, the wine spends 18 months in French oak barrels, of which 50% are new. The wine is richly layered, with lush flavors and impeccable balance. In the glass, it’s an opaque dark crimson with a purple/black-ish tint, with a big blast of dark fruits leading things off: blackberry, mulberry, cassis, currant. Then the savory elements chime in: cacao, warm spice, leather, tobacco, cedar. It is the perfect kind of full-bodied—palate-coating but fresh, finishing with a violet-scented flourish. If enjoying a bottle now, decant it 60 minutes before enjoying in big Bordeaux stems at 60 degrees, being sure to pair it with a proper hunk of meat to do it justice.
