2001 Paraduxx (Duckhorn) Green Winged Teal

Paraduxx is part of the Duckhorn Wine Company, which owns 13 estates in Napa and Anderson Valleys. Like the Duckhorn, Goldeneye, Migration, Decoy and Canvas Back estates, Paraduxx is partly owned by a private equity firm, though founder Dan Duckhorn remains chairman of the board of Duckhorn Wine Company. Paraduxx opened its new winemaking facility in 2005 on the Silverado Trail, though Duckhorn had been making Paraduxx label wines since the 1990s. Paraduxx was started in order to create blends outside of Duckhorn’s traditional focus on Bordeaux style wines. Since then Paraduxx has made a wide variety of blends using Cabernet Sauvignon, Zinfandel, Merlot, Petit Verdot, Viognier and Chardonnay.

St. Helena AVA is at the northern end of Napa Valley just north of Rutherford and south of Calistoga. It is a relatively warm climate thanks to the Mayacamas Mountains on its western edge, which protect it from Pacific Ocean fog. Out of the 9,000 acres in the appellation, some 1,500 are under vine. The principal grapes grown in St. Helena are the Bordeaux grapes of Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc and Merlot. St. Helena is considered prime wine producing territory, and it was one of the first important wine producing regions in northern California. The legendary Charles Krug founded his winery just north of the town of St. Helena in 1873, and today the appellation is home to many prestigious producers, including Abreu, Grace Family and Spottswoode.