Depiction Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley 2018

The base of the Mayacamas mountain range, on the west side of St. Helena, is home to many acclaimed vineyards revered globally by wine lovers. The prized list of lauded land includes Spottswoode, Abreu, Beckstoffer, The Crane Assembly, Barbour, Anomaly, and Gallica. Beginning in 2012, this extraordinary viticultural neighborhood welcomed another petit brand, its precious fruit hailing from a tiny, newly planted vineyard. With terroir this legendary, it should come as no surprise that one of ACME’s favorite, micro-projects has jumped to the front of the line with its sought-after status. I am talking about the very rare bottling of Depiction. Today marks the release of their 2018 vintage and as a comparison, if you love Cabernet from Beckstoffer Dr. Crane, I think you’ll see a resemblance here with the velvety, lush style. (Honestly, it would be hard to miss.) We love, love, love this brand! DEPICTION is the brilliant creation coming from our friends and neighbors here in Saint Helena: Sebastian and Estelle Lane. Sebastian is a barrel cooper and a real estate agent in the Napa Valley who has deep roots and profound connections in the wine industry going back several decades. In 2009, he helped a couple find their "dream home” on the west side of St. Helena down a quaint, wine country road. Just a stone's throw from other small parcels of prime vineyard land previously mentioned, Seb saw the incredible potential this perfect plot of land held and his imagination started to wander. Seb convinced the owners to allow him to plant a small portion of the pristine property to vines (predominantly Cabernet Sauvignon) and with the invaluable advice from his close, personal (unnamed, famous) vineyard and winemaking connections, he combined his and Estelle's love for winemaking and art into one of the most visionary, creative, thought-provoking wine projects ever conceived. For each vintage of Depiction, Seb and Estelle Lane commission an original painting or photograph from an artist who inspires them; a piece of art that is true to the artist's ideas and vision. When the artwork is completed, they hand-cut it into dozens of smaller pieces, nearly equal to the number of bottles they have produced for that vintage. Those individual canvas segments of the painting become the physical front labels of their magnum bottlings for that vintage. The reverse side of each label is hand-numbered to enable its original location in the painting to be discovered. The canvas label has been applied in a way that the label can be peeled from the bottle and framed without damage to the original artwork. The wine can be enjoyed as a memory and the original art can stay on the bottle in your cellar or become a piece of art on your wall. A tiny amount of wine is bottled in 750ml format for those who prefer a smaller size, coming from the remainder of the very few barrels produced. This small-production gem is absolutely DELICIOUS. Do not miss this vintage if you love RICH, BOLD, FRUIT-FORWARD REDS! In addition to the works of art that Seb and Estelle have created with their Depiction Magnum Sets (shown below), standard 750mL bottles are offered clothed in a "blank canvas" label, i.e., the art is on the interior of the bottle only, allowing you the opportunity to enjoy and audition the wine that will be released in magnum format in next year's release. On the "blank canvas" label - and the location an artist would traditionally sign the work - instead, it carries the vintage date, Mother Nature's signature. This 2018 once again proved to us how excellent the vineyard's terroir truly is. This vintage exhibits velvety, fine-grained, perfectly integrated tannins with mesmerizing aromas and purity of ripe, black fruits, expressive, seductive, and opulent on the palate with a finish for days. This vintage will blow you away!