Mission Codename Long Knights
Welcome to Super Spy Sunday! Each Sunday we strive to showcase a higher-priced wine at a super, spy-friendly price. At 55% off, today’s wine is very likely to sell out.
We’re enamored with the of Daniel Fitzgerald, who perfected his craft at legendary California wineries, Williams Selyem and Robert Sinskey Vineyards. Today’s Enos Vineyards 2013 Totem Ridge Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon is a dark, concentrated and very elegant wine from the Knights Valley.
Dark aromas waft to greet you on the nose, with blackberry jam, sweet tobacco, plum, smoky black cherry, cigar box, sweet spice, twigs, toasty oak and chocolate.
Bright and juicy on the palate with Rainier cherry, young blackberry, strawberry, cassis, black cherry juice, dried herbs, sweet spice and cracked clay earth.
The Knights Valley AVA (American Viticultural Area), in Sonoma County, California, is one of Sonoma County’s initial five American Viticultural Areas. Formally designated an American Viticultural Area on October 21, 1983, the area includes approximately 38,000 acres, 2000 of which are planted to wine grapes.
The region is the easternmost AVA and it enjoys the warmest climate in the county. The Knights Valley lies between the Alexander Valley AVA and Chalk Hill AVA wine regions to the west and the Mayacamas Mountains to the east. The appellation separates the rest of Sonoma County from the Napa Valley AVA - which lies to the east.
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Here’s what the wine press has to say:
94 points - “Sommelier to the Stars” Chris Sawyer - “Located along the secret passage between Healdsburg to Calistoga through the Mayacamas Mountains, Knights Valley is a magnificent appellation known for its warm climate and ideal conditions to grown world-class Cabernet Sauvignon grapes.
The latest offering from this dynamic winegrowing region is the Enos 2013 Cabernet Sauvignon. Crafted with fruit from the high-elevation Totem Ridge Vineyard, this full-bodied wine features an attractive dark red-purple hue and lofty aromas of black and blue fruits, licorice, mountain herbs, and cedar. The palate is equally impressive with deep notes of ripe blackberry, blueberry, huckleberry, cocoa and allspice. Accented with rich texture, firm structure and chewy tannins, the finish is long and captivating to the very last sip.
For foodies, this is a great Cabernet Sauvignon to pair with blue cheese, roasted vegetables, lamb sliders, seared duck breast, pasta with hearty red sauce, slow-cooked stews, and grilled steaks.”
90 points - Virginie Boone, Wine Enthusiast - “This is sourced from a steep site on the southern end of the appellation, a sunny location that provides concentration and weight to the wine. Smoky, herbal and earthy, it offers a wealth of rounded tannin and approachable texture that’s complemented by dark cherry, blackberry, clove and vanilla.”
What the Winery Says
2013 Totem Ridge Vineyard Knights Valley Cabernet Sauvignon
- Winemaker
- Dan Fitzgerald
- Varietal
- Cabernet Sauvignon
- Vintage
- 2013
- Appellation
- Knights Valley
- Abv
- 13.9%
- pH
- 3.62
- TA
- .65g/100ml
- Aging
- 24 months
- Barrels
- 50% new French oak
- Harvest date
- Oct 14th, 2013
- Bottling date
- December 2015
- Production
- 448 cases