Images Courtesy of Suzanne Becker Bronk
The Mt. Veeder AVA is one of the coolest of Napa Valley's mountain AVAs and the rugged mountain terrain of this AVA results in low grape yields and high ageability of its wines.
The Mount Veeder AVA is a sub-appellation of the Napa Valley AVA and is located in Napa Valley, California, on the eastern slopes of the Mayacamas Range that separates Napa Valley and the Sonoma Valley. Because of its proximity to San Pablo Bay and its steep, mostly east-facing slopes which enjoy the gentle morning sun, Mt. Veeder is the coolest of Napa Valley's mountain AVAs. Therefore, the Cabernets tend to be very high in tannin and acidity and are capable of great age. Many Mt. Veeder Cabernets also feature a distinct mintiness.
This is one of Napa Valley’s largest AVAs yet is one of the least planted, due in large part to the extreme cragginess of the terrain. The few locations genial enough to host vineyards tend to be rather small in size, so Mount Veeder is mostly home to small-scale artisan operations. Mount Veeder’s soils are a complex jumble of substrates (Franciscan Mélange), with only the rare pocket of volcanic material.
The Mount Veeder AVA is named after the Reverend Peter V. Veeder, who was a Presbyterian pastor in the 1850's. The exact date when his name was applied to the area is unknown, although the name Mount Veeder is mentioned in "The History of Napa and Lake Counties", published in 1881. Mount Veeder is the most prominent peak in the area at over 2677 feet elevation and has been acknowledged as a significant wine producing area since the 1870's . The first winery in the area was built by John Hein in 1880 and six other wineries were known to exist in the area by the mid 1880's.
Wine production in the Mount Veeder area was significantly diminished with the onset of Phylloxera in the late 1880's and while some small scale winegrowing remained, many of those producers later converted to grape juice, or were closed by the passing of Prohibition in 1920. One of the only wine producers allowed to continue production during Prohibition was the Christian Brothers, or "Brothers of the Christian Schools", a religious Catholic group devoted to education. The Christian Brothers produced Altar Wines, or wines made specifically for use as Communion wine and intended for use as part of the celebration of the Eucharist. However, after the passing of the 21st Amendment in 1933, the Christian Brothers began making table wines as well, from their Mont LaSalle winery on Mount Veeder.
Since prohibition, wine production in the Mount Veeder AVA has continued to grow, with over 1000 acres of land planted with grapevines and over 35 vintners producing wine. Mount Veeder was officially recognized as an American Viticultural Area in 1990.
"The Mount Veeder AVA encompasses a large area but it is so rugged that the vineyards are mostly small and isolated, constituting a patchwork when viewed from above. Mount Veeder combines the shallow soil of its mountain location with the cool marine air flowing up from the nearby San Pablo Bay, a combination that yields small berries of concentrated complexity."
- Carole Meredith, Lagier Meredith Vineyard
Mount Veeder Winery was one of the first producers of Cabernet Franc, and was the first vineyard in California to plant all five Bordeaux varietals. This is a truly noble grape variety, as the father of Cabernet Sauvignon, with its own personality and characteristics that reach terrific expression on the mountain.
Cabernet Franc offers a complex array of characters –plums, cherries, peppercorn, violets, olive, and tobacco, and gives quintessential Bordeaux expression. I love its power with refinement, richness with elegance. The high elevation and steep hillsides of our vineyards create small berries of intense concentration. We have only a small amount of Cabernet Franc planted, so it’s a treat to be able to create a limited production bottling of this special variety.
SPECIFICATIONS
GRAPES: 71% CABERNET SAUVIGNON 16% CABERNET FRANC 13% PETIT VERDOT
APPELLATION: MOUNT VEEDER, NAPA VALLEY
VINEYARD: SAFFRON VINEYARD
AGING: 24 MONTHS IN 100% NEW FRENCH OAK
SOILS: LOAMY WITH SHALE & VOLCANIC ROCK
FERMENTATION: NATURAL YEASTS
HARVEST DATE: OCTOBER 2019
CASES PRODUCED: 284 CASES
The Bacchus vineyard is a single plot of Cabernet Sauvignon that was left to grow wild for many years. The Crouse family purchased the site in 2010 and work began on reviving these beautiful old vines growing down a thirty degree slope across loam leading to volcanic soils. The 2014 vintage broke records for heat, but fortunately the top of the mountain was cooled by the breezes from the San Pablo Bay with very cool nights allowing the vines to rest. Despite the amazing conditions, yields were still low in keeping with this appellations reputation for the lowest average yields in the Napa Valley. Here at Tate we crafted this wine to be a great example of what an isolated, unique, single vineyard on Mount Veeder can produce.
Paras Vineyard: Alban and 515 clone
Mount Veeder AVA, Napa Valley
Steep south-facing hillsides of shale and sandstone pebbles
1200 -1400 feet elevation
Unfined and unfiltered
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