OH-KA-PIE!!

Almost as fun to say as it is to drink. With “flamboyant black fruits” and more than $75 clipped off the price though - it’s DEFINITELY more fun to drink.

Okapi is yet another previously unknown to us discovery. A modest husband and wife team make these wines from a minuscule 1.7-acre vineyard. Just about 300 cases are made, available almost all exclusively straight from the source. Today we’re busting out a small fraction of what remains.

Kim and Dan Johnson, inspired by Dick Arrowood - a mentor you may know - purchased a modest parcel of land in Oak Knoll, with a small old house and a lot of overgrown brush occupying the site. That would become transformed into their Jungle Love Vineyard. Today this tiny plot holds 2,000 Cabernet vines which power their small production.

If an iconic mentor wasn’t enough, Kim and Dan also signed on an iconic winemaker. Ted Osborn started his career at Cakebread Cellars back in the day and went on to make wine all over the world including Storybrook Mountain Winery, Blue Hall, Spence and also his own project, Olabisi Wines. A master of small, high-end production, Osborn is a force to be watching, for sure.

2014 was a terrific vintage - remembered mostly for the earthquake near harvest. But that had no impact on the grapes, and overall, it was a long, warm, and dry year. Ten years of age has done wonders for this wine, softened it up, and brought a friendly, polished side into focus. Super integrated, the fruit remains firmly in focus, and it shows no signs of slowing down on the road to another ten years of age.

Blackberry coulis and black plum dominate the fruit profile. With spicy tobacco and sweet oak and violets framing the fruit. A touch of earthy minerality and baking spice make their way into the picture. Chalky smooth tannins hold it together. This bottle is absolutely SINGING right now, with another decade of runway, easy.

If our calculations are correct, this has a strong chance of going the way of the dodo, the golden toad, and the wooly mammoth… get yours while it’s here!

Decanter World Wine Award

“Flamboyant black fruits, olive tapenade, truffle, chocolate, dried meat, and a hint of tar. A huge amount to enjoy here.”