1994 Chimney Rock Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon

Chimney Rock, in the Stags Leap district of Napa Valley, California, was founded in 1980 when Sheldon Wilson, a former Pepsi executive, and his wife Sheila bought the Chimney Rock Golf Course and bulldozed half of it to make way for vineyards. The first vintage was in 1984. In 2000 the Terlato Wine Group of Chicago, one of the nation’s largest importers of high end wine, bought into the estate. In 2004 the Terlato group took full ownership of Chimney Rock. The closely-held Terlato Wine Group also owns Rutherford Hill, Alderbrook and Sanford Winery. Today the winery is known for Cabernet Sauvignon, though it also produces Fume Blanc, Rose, and several Bordeaux-style blends. Wine Advocate has often complimented the estate’s wine, as in 2005, when the reviewer wrote that “elegant reds and whites routinely emerge from Chimney Rock. In fact, those who claim California wines lack finesse and delicacy should check out these offerings.”

Napa Valley AVA is the most famous winemaking region in the United States and one of the most prestigious in the world. With nearly 43,000 acres of vineyards and more than 300 wineries, it is the heart of fine wine production in the United States. Winemaking started in Napa in 1838 when George C. Yount planted grapes and began producing wine commercially. Other winemaking pioneers followed in the late 19th century, including the founders of Charles Krug, Schramsberg, Inglenook and Beaulieu Vineyards. An infestation of phylloxera, an insect that attacks vine roots, and the onset of Prohibition nearly wiped out the nascent Napa wine industry in the early 20th century. But by the late 1950s and early 1960s Robert Mondavi and other visionaries were producing quality wines easily distinguishable from the mass-produced jug wines made in California’s Central Valley. Napa Valley’s AVA was established in 1983, and today there are 16 sub-appellations within the Napa Valley AVA. Many grapes grow well in Napa’s Mediterranean climate, but the region is best known for Cabernet Sauvignon. Chardonnay is also very successfully cultivated, and about 30% of the AVA’s acreage is planted to white grapes, with the majority of those grapes being Chardonnay,

One of the most widely grown grape varieties, it can be found in nearly every wine growing region. A cross between Cabernet Franc and Sauvignon Blanc. It’s a hardy vine that produces a full-bodied wine with high tannins and great aging potential.