By Bruce Neyers

Thursday 14th February, 2019

Word just arrived that the March 31 issue of the Wine Spectator will include reviews of several California wines produced from traditional southern Rhône grape varieties. We were delighted to learn that our 2017 Sage Canyon Red was one of the highest scoring wines, and received the following review:

“Loaded with personality yet balanced and well-knit, offering lively, floral pomegranate and cherry flavors accented by savory bay leaf and white pepper notes, finishing with snappy tannins. Carignan, Grenache, Mourvèdre, and Syrah. Drink now through 2024. 1,575 cases made.”  –Tim Fish – Score 91 POINTS

The Neyers 2017 Sage Canyon Red is a blend of 45% Carignan, 25% Grenache, 15% Mourvèdre and 15% Syrah. We retain 100% of the stems during the long skin contact fermentation – using exclusively wild, natural yeast – so the grapes are crushed entirely by foot, using a traditional French ‘Pigeage.’ There is no mechanical grape crushing. The new wine is then aged 1 year in 60-gallon French oak barrels. The 2017 may be the finest version to date.

The photo here is of our winery tasting room last spring, with the winery in the background. Both are in the heart of the Sage Canyon region of Napa Valley.