H.L.R. Cellars Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon Fountaingrove District 2018

H.L.R. Cellars is a small boutique winery established in 2010 by Steve and Joan Heller. After three decades spent working for General Mills, Steve looked forward to retirement and a new lease on life. The couple took just one trip to Sonoma Valley to settle on their new home. Shortly after, they found their 15-acre property and got to work restoring a dormant and overgrown vineyard. The property had been farmed since the 1880s but was in desperate need of updating. Steve and Joan had the imagination necessary to envision what it could become. The development of H.L.R. Cellars and Heller Family Vineyards coincided with the founding of a new American Viticulture Area (AVA) called Fountaingrove District, and the Heller's new property happens to sit at the highest elevation within it. With final approval wrapping up in March of 2015, we have only begun to see this AVA popping up on labels.

The Fountaingrove District AVA comprises 38,000 acres, with 600 planted with grapevines. Vineyards are typically small, with a median size of 12 acres, and almost all are family-owned. The designation has been a long time coming, considering that Napa Valley's Diamond Mountain AVA stops at the peak of the Mayacamas range, despite the unique volcanic soils spilling over into the Sonoma side of the mountain. In other words, H.L.R. delivers the unique terroir of Napa's prized Diamond Mountain without the sticker shock! The climate of the Fountaingrove District AVA is outstanding as well. While it is farther inland than most other Sonoma County AVAs, the gap in the Sonoma Mountains at the City of Santa Rosa allows the maritime influence to penetrate the AVA. As a result, Cabernet in the area tends toward lower alcohol and more subtle flavors than the hotter vineyard sites just miles away.

With the family-run nature of H.L.R. Cellars, Steve is exceptionally hands-on throughout the winemaking process. After an early October harvest on their estate, the two clones of Cabernet Sauvignon grapes fermented over 14 days. During fermentation, Steve punched down the wine three to four times daily. Punching down is pressing the grape skins that float to the top during fermentation to submerge fully in the juice. This process assists in imparting deep color and building the tannic structure in the wine. It is both time and labor-intensive, but when done by hand, it is a tried-and-true winemaking technique that makes for structured, complex wines. Once pressed, the wine finished its secondary fermentation and aged in 53% new French oak barrels for 25 months. Steve selected six barrels that stood out from the rest for the Reserve bottling, all showing outstanding quality and nuanced flavor during barrel sampling.

The 2018 Reserve is modest at first on the nose, with delicate notes of black cherry, wild blackberries, and red plum. While shy at first impression, the wine opens entirely on the palate with balanced acidity and velvety tannins. The palate is all dark fruits with hints of milk chocolate, espresso, and cedar. Paired with a perfectly grilled ribeye steak, this Cabernet is the perfect sidekick, but time will be the most benevolent here. You'll undoubtedly be rewarded if you can muster the patience to cellar for a few years.