Wine Article
2009 Treasure Cellars Proprietary Blend
Last edited on 12/4/2011 by Eric
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From envoyer:
"The Treasure Hunter boys have just taken things to the next level with this latest Cabernet – a far outer level. Without a doubt the best wine we’ve ever tasted from them and the story here is so intriguing. $120 Howell Mountain juice bottled with a different label and sold for $20. We know that the phrase ‘best yet’ can feel like us blowing smoke, but this is the real deal and then some. Here are the details. This wine is sourced from a vineyard planted on Howell Mt. about 15 years ago with no expenses sparred. A small 12 acre estate from steep mountain hillsides and dramatic micro-climates studied and tested geologically before being strategically planted with Bordeaux varietals. This last stage was completed with consultation from famed vigernon/enologist Philippe Melka (of Screaming Eagle, Justin, and Parellel fame) as well as the estate’s initial vintages allowing the current winemaking team to come up under the master. Only 450 cases of this beauty are bottled each year. Since its inception the vineyard has been farmed organically with the entire estate being run ‘sustainably’ in terms of irrigation, energy, and materials. Before being a fabulous deal this is a wonderful reflection of a special site and motivation. And like the best bottles, these efforts directly attribute to the quality of the wine. This is a bottle to put alongside your other $100 bottles. Structured, coiled power, and masculine elegance (if that makes sense?). There is absolutely zero sense of heaviness or over-extraction and while its mountain terroir is so transparent that its origins are on full display, if this were slipped into a Bordeaux tasting we wouldn’t be surprised if this was mistaken for a classified growth/top vintage from gravelly Graves (the blend here is a majority Cab Sauv followed by Cab Franc, Merlot, and Petite Verdot). The balance, spectrum of fruits, and subtlety of nuance are as good as it gets in CA. At once deep and high-toned, coiled, and intense. We really cannot say enough as the tannins, complexity, and purity are sophisticated and spot on. We’ve let this bottle decant all day and now that we’re getting this offer ready (10pm), the wine is still showing incredibly young yet with such class that it’s more than just intellectually enjoyable tonight. A multiple decade wine for those willing to put a $20 bottle down long-term, and a wine to impress the masses as the price will be shocking if served blind. We’ve turned down offers from Treasure Hunter all summer as we really want our customers to come away beyond happy by their mystery steals, not simply jumping at every heavy handed expensive Cabernet, and finally we have a home run on our hands. Their growing depth of connections has led to something special and whether to drink up, bury in the cellar, or give away as holiday gifts a case of this wine needs to be in route to all of our customers. A wine typically only available to the estate’s client list, it is now opened up to our customers exclusively at pennies on the dollar. The boys have done it again and given us the best deal on the market in domestic wine!"
"The Treasure Hunter boys have just taken things to the next level with this latest Cabernet – a far outer level. Without a doubt the best wine we’ve ever tasted from them and the story here is so intriguing. $120 Howell Mountain juice bottled with a different label and sold for $20. We know that the phrase ‘best yet’ can feel like us blowing smoke, but this is the real deal and then some. Here are the details. This wine is sourced from a vineyard planted on Howell Mt. about 15 years ago with no expenses sparred. A small 12 acre estate from steep mountain hillsides and dramatic micro-climates studied and tested geologically before being strategically planted with Bordeaux varietals. This last stage was completed with consultation from famed vigernon/enologist Philippe Melka (of Screaming Eagle, Justin, and Parellel fame) as well as the estate’s initial vintages allowing the current winemaking team to come up under the master. Only 450 cases of this beauty are bottled each year. Since its inception the vineyard has been farmed organically with the entire estate being run ‘sustainably’ in terms of irrigation, energy, and materials. Before being a fabulous deal this is a wonderful reflection of a special site and motivation. And like the best bottles, these efforts directly attribute to the quality of the wine. This is a bottle to put alongside your other $100 bottles. Structured, coiled power, and masculine elegance (if that makes sense?). There is absolutely zero sense of heaviness or over-extraction and while its mountain terroir is so transparent that its origins are on full display, if this were slipped into a Bordeaux tasting we wouldn’t be surprised if this was mistaken for a classified growth/top vintage from gravelly Graves (the blend here is a majority Cab Sauv followed by Cab Franc, Merlot, and Petite Verdot). The balance, spectrum of fruits, and subtlety of nuance are as good as it gets in CA. At once deep and high-toned, coiled, and intense. We really cannot say enough as the tannins, complexity, and purity are sophisticated and spot on. We’ve let this bottle decant all day and now that we’re getting this offer ready (10pm), the wine is still showing incredibly young yet with such class that it’s more than just intellectually enjoyable tonight. A multiple decade wine for those willing to put a $20 bottle down long-term, and a wine to impress the masses as the price will be shocking if served blind. We’ve turned down offers from Treasure Hunter all summer as we really want our customers to come away beyond happy by their mystery steals, not simply jumping at every heavy handed expensive Cabernet, and finally we have a home run on our hands. Their growing depth of connections has led to something special and whether to drink up, bury in the cellar, or give away as holiday gifts a case of this wine needs to be in route to all of our customers. A wine typically only available to the estate’s client list, it is now opened up to our customers exclusively at pennies on the dollar. The boys have done it again and given us the best deal on the market in domestic wine!"