Library Spotlight: The 2017 Foolhardy Cab

One of the great pleasures of winemaking is following what’s in bottle and seeing how it changes. That has certainly been the case with the 2017 Foolhardy Cabernet Sauvignon, our special library release for the fall club shipment. This remains one of our favorites, in no small part due to how beautifully it has evolved in glass. Opportunities to get terrific old vine Cab at peak maturity are rare, especially at such a reasonable price, so we thought this an ideal occasion to tell you more about this special wine. 

Two-thousand-seventeen was only our second vintage, so at the time we didn't have many reference points to which we could compare it. The growing season started late after a cool, rainy winter. July and August were intermittently scorching, surpassing 100 degrees on numerous days. Contrary to popular thinking, torrid weather does not accelerate ripening; it retards it. Vines go into survival mode when it's that hot, with winemaker priorities (i.e., ripening fruit flavors and tannins) going by the wayside. By the time weather cooled in September, both Elephant Mountain and Red Willow--the two principal components of the Foolhardy Cabernet--were not yet near ideal maturity. Fortunately, September and the first half of October were fairly cool and steady. Before picking, we went row by row to drop any clusters that had gotten sunburned during summer heat. The fruit looked outstanding upon arrival to the winery.

Both lots smelled great in tank during fermentation--the Red Willow had lovely raspberry and floral notes, while the EM showed its typical blue and black fruit plushness. Our optimism was unabashed watching the wine develop in barrel. Trying it the first months after bottling on July 23, 2019, we were excited about the potential.

But then the 2017 Foolhardy Cab went to sleep, losing much of the vibrancy and fruit energy we'd noted in barrel. It wasn't a surprise, exactly, as wines pretty much always shut down at some point after bottling. Experience shows that after naptime, they return (gradually) to peak form, showing all the charm noted while aging in wood.

Today, nine years after harvest and seven years post-bottling, the 2017 is at full speed. We expected as much, as Foolhardy wines age exceptionally well. Wonderfully aromatic, with a mix of red and black fruit and floral tones, it is perfectly mature. The oak tones from aging in forty-four percent new French barrels are now integrated and harmonious. It is intense but never heavy, with the concentration and focus to beautifully complement a holiday meal (leg of lamb, prime rib, short ribs or anything mushroom will be great). 

We hope you enjoy this as much as we do.

The 2017 Foolhardy Cab is only available to our Club and in the Tasting Room.