California Cabernet wine Joullian Cabernet Sauvignon 2002 has a high concentration of black fruit and anise flavors, with tannins that are silky and a nose of perfumed fruit. The extended Cabernet macerations often last 30-40 days, providing more integrated tannins, deeper black fruit and anise flavors, and a seamless texture. Rich, robust,elegant,and concentrated, this is a claret lover’s wine with amplified fruit and bouquet. Note that the new barrels add spice, not wood flavor. 3-year air-dried stavewood makes the difference! Enjoy the marriage of Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Cabernet Franc now, or after 10 years of bottle age. The wine will always remain balanced, fruity, and with ever increasing perfume. This wine can be cellared until 2015.

Early in 1981, Joullian Vineyards purchased 655 acres of hillside benchland at an elevation of 1400 feet, in the heart of the remote Carmel Valley, Monterey County California viticulture appellation. Following extensive contouring and terracing, 40 acres of high density-spaced vines were planted in the rocky Arroyo Seco series loam. The planting emphasized Bordeaux varieties and allocated two-thirds of the vineyard to Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Cabernet Franc, Sauvignon Blanc and Semillon. The remaining 13 acres, originally allotted to Chardonnay, were grafted to pre-prohibition Zinfandel selections throughout the 1990’s. Pursuing complexity in the wines, Watson planted a variety of vines from reputed sources such as Sterling, Mount Veeder, 3 Palms, Ventana and Lytton Springs. The winery, completed in the Spring of 1991, was designed to handle each vineyard block separately to insure that the complex subtleties and nuances produced in the field be transferred into the bottle.

RATINGS: Silver Medal - San Francisco Chronicle Wine Competition
85 Points - Connoisseurs' Guide to California Wines
"Straightforward cherryish fruit is teamed with a pleasant bit of caramelly oak here, while touches of dill and a note of piquant acidity provide the wine a slight twist of difference..."

Joullian California Cabernet Sauvignon 2002 Information:
Varietal Content: 85% Cabernet Sauvignon 8% Merlot 7% Cabernet Franc
Appellation: 100% Joullian Estate, Carmel Valley
Sugar At Harvest: 23.0° Brix
Fermentation: Primary/secondary fermentation completed in 11-43 days using multiple yeasts and malolactic strains
Barrel Aging: Seventeen months in 30% new and twice used French and American oak barrels.
Alcohol: 13.1%
Total Acidity/pH: 6.1g/L; 3.77
Residual Sugar: Dry (0.05%)
Total Production: 2983 cases, 750ml; 25 cases, 1.5 L; 18 bottles, 6.0 L
Release Date: November 1, 2005