Dana Estates VASO Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley 2018

VASO was first produced in 2006 with the singular goal of exporting all of the production to South Korea, the birthplace of proprietor Hi Sang Lee. Finally, with the 2013 vintage, Dana Estates reserved a small amount of VASO for the US market, and ACME was among the first retailers to receive an allocation. Since then, our strong relationship with the winery has ensured that our treasured clients receive access to this exceptional wine year after year. 

The great Philippe Melka has been at the helm of Dana Estates as Consulting Winemaker since the debut vintage of 2005. Dana Estates is hands down, a “winemaker’s winery,” designed entirely with their estate vineyards and small lots in mind. The winery includes three individual fermentation rooms, one for each of their three spectacular vineyard sites. This technique (and investment) allows the team to best capture every varying element that the individual vineyards produce in the fruit. Helms Vineyard (located on the estate in Rutherford) Cabernet Sauvignon is fermented in large, customized oak tanks, while fruit from the Hershey Vineyard (atop Howell Mountain) is barrel-fermented in French oak barriques, and finally grapes from the Lotus Vineyard (adjacent to the Silverado Trail in the Vaca Mountains) are fermented in varying-size concrete vessels to help soften some of the robust tannins that the Lotus Vineyard is known for. The core of the VASO blend comes from their highest vineyard, Hershey Vineyard on Howell Mountain, with fruit from the other estate vineyards meticulously blended in. Intensely flavored berries with thick, darkly colored skins showcase the terroir and complexity from each site and the result is unbelievably delightful! 

In 2018, Napa Valley experienced a near perfect growing season yielding wines of great balance, precision, focus, and depth of flavor. Chris and his team carefully blended 90% Cabernet Sauvignon, 5% Merlot, 4% Malbec and 1% Petit Verdot utilizing fruit from all the Dana Estates Vineyards. Aged for 22 months in French oak, of which only 12% is new. This wine has a generous perfume that is bursting with personality and exudes fragrances of red currant, black plum, and dark chocolate with hints of nutmeg and baking spices. Flavors of red cherry entice the front palate as the hillside fruit expression takes over, fusing flavors of blackberry, roasted coffee and dried herbs as the firm tannins fill out the mid-palate. Approachable now, the tannins are sturdy and seamlessly integrated making for an extremely opulent finish. Dollar for dollar, it can’t be beat. This wine will continue to soften and develop over the next five to ten years.