From record-breaking heat to drizzly summer days, the 2017 growing season was challenging for winemakers. Throughout the valley, temperatures soared well over 100 degrees for multiple days in late August and early September causing a flurry of activity in the vineyards and wineries. We source Sauvignon Blanc grapes from the warmer Pope Valley and cooler Carneros regions. The 2017 Vintage saw us harvest our warmer appellation fruit beginning September 1 and our cooler appellation fruit on September 8 shrinking what is usually a two to three week ripening difference to just one week.  We count ourselves very lucky to have safely completed our Sauvignon Blanc Harvest well ahead of the October fires.

Tony Coltrin set out to maximize fruit expression in our 2017 Oberon Sauvignon Blanc from Napa Valley. “We used both cold tank fermentation and 33% barrel fermentation to maximize the overall fruit expression. The cold-fermentation in tank helps us maintain the pureness of fruit and aromatics, and barrel fermentation adds a subtle creaminess and length.”

Blend: 83.7% Sauvignon Blanc, 16.3% Sauvignon Musqué Alcohol 13.7%  |  TA 6.72 g/L | pH 3.23  | RS 0.21 g/L

The Oberon Sauvignon Blanc is distinctive in style because its fruit is sourced from both the Pope Valley and Carneros Appellations of Napa Valley.  This combination of multi-terroir fruit and distinctively different micro climates marries bright natural acidity with layered fresh flavors of green apple, tart kiwi, pear and melon.  

Another year of drought conditions and a continued warm, dry winter season, resulted in an early bud break, that coupled with a cool Spring and long flowering period lead to uneven fruit set and smaller grape clusters. Temperatures through the first half of the growing season were even and warm, giving way to a roller coaster of hot and cold conditions in the final ripening weeks that pushed the harvest ahead by 2 weeks. This weather pattern resulted in smaller than usual clusters and a lighter than usual crop of beautiful rich character. We source Sauvignon Blanc grapes from the warmer southern Napa Valley and cooler Carneros regions. The 2016 Vintage saw us harvest our warmer appellation fruit on September 14 and our cooler appellation fruit on September 28 a full two weeks apart.

Tony Coltrin set out to maximize fruit expression in our 2016 Oberon Sauvignon Blanc from Napa Valley. “We used both cold tank fermentation and 33% barrel fermentation to maximize the overall fruit expression. The cold-fermentation in tank helps us maintain the pureness of fruit and aromatics, and barrel fermentation adds a subtle creaminess and length.”

Blend: 88.2% Sauvignon Blanc, 11.8% Sauvignon Musqué Alcohol 13.7%  |  TA 6.63 g/L | pH 3.17  | RS 0.2 g/L

The Oberon Sauvignon Blanc is distinctive in style because its fruit is sourced from both the Oaknoll and Carneros Districts of Napa Valley. This combination of multi-terroir fruit marries bright natural acidity with layered fresh flavors of green apple, tart kiwi, pear and melon.

Despite receiving close to 75% of normal rainfall, the warmer and dryer than usual winter season, resulted in an early bud break that coupled with a cool Spring and long flowering period resulted in an uneven fruit set. Temperatures through the first half of the growing season were even and warm, giving way to repeated heat surges in the final ripening weeks that pushed the harvest ahead by 2 weeks. This weather pattern resulted in smaller than usual clusters and a lighter than usual crop of beautiful rich character. Sauvignon Blanc grapes from Oso Vineyard were harvested in the middle of August 14–24 and those grown in Milliken Vineyard were picked for the first time in August on August 28.

Tony Coltrin set out to maximize fruit expression in our 2015 Oberon Sauvignon Blanc from Napa Valley. “We used both cold tank fermentation and 33% barrel fermentation to maximize the overall fruit expression. The cold-fermentation in tank helps us maintain the pureness of fruit and aromatics, and barrel fermentation adds a subtle creaminess and length.”

Blend: 89.0% Sauvignon Blanc 11.0% Sauvignon Blanc Musqué Alcohol 13.7% TA 6.40 g/L pH 3.23 RS 0.499 g/L

The Oberon Sauvignon Blanc is distinctive in style because its fruit is sourced from both our warmer Oso Vineyard, located in northeastern Napa Valley, and the cooler Milliken Vineyard in the southern part of the valley. “With each vintage, we want Oberon Sauvignon Blanc to show bright natural acidity and fresh flavors. We also want an underlying richness and complexity that balances the wine and adds fullness and length to the mouth-feel,” says winemaker Tony Coltrin. The 2015 vintage includes 11.0 percent of Sauvignon Musqué clone grown in the Oso Vineyard, which adds another layer of richness and expressive aromatics to the blend, starting with citrus and passion fruit notes, tart kiwi, and developing into orange blossom.

Despite the lack of rain during the spring, Napa Valley had an excellent growing season and harvest provided an abundance of quality grapes. From spring bud break, through flowering, fruit set, and ripening, conditions were ideal. A consistent stretch of warm summer weather, with a few large heat spikes and plenty of cool and foggy nights, ripened grapes to perfection. Sauvignon Blanc grapes from Oso Vineyard were harvested in the middle of August and first week of September and those grown in Milliken Vineyard were picked middle of September.

Tony Coltrin set out to maximize fruit expression in our 2014 Oberon Sauvignon Blanc from Napa Valley. “We used both cold tank fermentation and 33% barrel fermentation to maximize the overall fruit expression. The cold-fermentation in tank helps us maintain the pureness of fruit and aromatics, and barrel fermentation adds a subtle creaminess and length.”

Blend: 76.0% Sauvignon Blanc 24.0% Sauvignon Blanc Musqué Alcohol 13.8% TA 6.40 g/L pH 3.14 RS 0.499 g/L

The Oberon Sauvignon Blanc is distinctive in style because its fruit is sourced from both our warmer Oso Vineyard, located in northeastern Napa Valley, and the cooler Milliken Vineyard in the southern part of the valley. “With each vintage, we want Oberon Sauvignon Blanc to show bright natural acidity and fresh flavors. We also want an underlying richness and complexity that balances the wine and adds fullness and length to the mouth-feel” says winemaker Tony Coltrin. The 2014 vintage includes a large percentage of Sauvignon Musquéclone grown in the Oso Vineyard, which adds another layer of richness and expressive aromatics to the blend, starting with citrus and passion fruit notes, tart kiwi, and developing into orange blossom.