O'Shaughnessy 2008 Cabernet Sauvignon Howell Mountain Napa Valley Red Wine

O'Shaughnessy

The 2008 vintage began with normal winter rains followed by a reasonably dry spring resulting in an earlier than normal bud break. The Napa Valley experienced the worst spring frosts in 31 years, slowing canopy development, coupled with strong winds during bloom, resulted in a 33% reduction in fruit. Our canopy management in May and June was challenging due to the “winter like “ spring conditions. When summer weather finally arrived the balance of the season created ideal growing conditions with a few heat spikes, resulting in excellent quality fruit. Our harvest began with the whites on September 3rd and concluded with Cabernet Franc on October 29th. 2500 cases.

Wine Advocate

94+ Points "The 2008 Cabernet Sauvignon Howell Mountain is comprised of 81% Cabernet Sauvignon and the rest six other grapes – Merlot, Malbec, St. Macaire (how often do you see that!), Petit Verdot, Carmenere, and Cabernet Franc – and is aged 20 months in three-fourths French oak. It has a dense purple color, a wonderful, crystalline nose of crushed rock, camphor, creme de cassis and spring flowers, and a full-bodied mouthfeel. The tannins are moderately high, but they are soft and well-integrated. This is a wine of tremendous intensity and plenty of up-side. Give this wine 2-3 years of bottle age and drink it over the following 20-25 years." - Robert Parker.

Type	Red
Varietal	Cabernet Sauvignon, Malbec, Merlot, Petit Verdot, Carmenère, St.Macaire, Cabernet Franc
Vintage	2008
Bottle size	750mL
Alcohol content	14.8%
Appellation	California – Napa Valley - Howell Mountain
Wine Advocate	95
Wine Enthusiast	--
Wine Spectator	--
Other	n/a

Our Winery
We believe that architecture should flow harmoniously with the environment, enhancing the beauty of the land, not detracting from it. With this as our guide, we chose stone for the exterior, to blend with the color and texture of our mountainside. Our architect then tied the stone and glass structure closely to our hillside, making the building blend perfectly with our site. The fermentation room houses state of the art tanks, architectural in their shape, yet maximized for function. We integrated glass wherever possible in order to bring the beauty of our mountain into our living and working spaces.
The landscape design blurs the line between the untouched and planned. Olives, rosemary and lavender frame the views with accents of colors throughout the verandas. Our outside dining space blends seamlessly with the hillside – a lovely place to picnic.

Our Caves
We created an 11,000 square foot cave by drilling into the hillside behind the winery. The semicircular construction with soaring 26 foot ceilings gives the impression that the cave continues forever. In keeping with the theme of esthetic simplicity, the cave remains uncluttered. The red wines rest in this beautiful environment for almost two years prior to bottling. Our cellar team believes strongly that the wine improves greatly by the variety of musical styles piped in during the aging process. You can taste Beethoven in the tannins.