2016 Hobel Cabernet Sauvignon The Grain
Grain: The orientation of wood-cell fibers or the arrangement or direction of fibers in wood.
The 2016 Hobel The Grain marks our eighth release from this exceptional vineyard. Once again, this wine shows super-expressive savory notes of olive, bay leaf, black walnut, grilled meat and wood spice. Swirling releases beautiful dark fruit - plums, blackberries and black cherries. This wine is less forward than the 2015, yet it holds just as much or more in reserve. The palate is extremely dense, led by plum and followed by cassis, chocolate and chewy, dusty, spicy tannin. As with prior vintages, we think this wine always benefits from some bottle age. The 2016 Grain is a blend of clones 4, 6 and 30. The wine was raised in 75% new French oak from Remond and Baron.
- Neck
Fir - Blend
100% Cabernet Sauvignon - Vineyard
Ciminelli Vineyard - Appellation
Napa Valley - Production
208 cases
The Vintage
2016 was an extremely welcome and giving vintage on multiple fronts. The growing season was very controlled with the precipitation at the right times. Unlike previous years, there were very few drastic heat events, to cause stress to both the vines and winemakers. Notably, there were only two days over 100 degrees, whereas in 2015 there were more than 20 days of 100 degree weather. An usually cool August pushed our estimated harvest date further back into a more normal schedule. The greatest benefit of prolonged hang time on the vine is that the fruit develops more complex anthocyanin compounds, leading to more intense and nuanced flavors. Another advantage of the favorable climate during the growing season was the increase in the number and size of clusters compared to 2015. Farmed by the Abreu Vineyard Management team, the vineyard was given exceptional care and attention throughout the growing season.
The Notes (From Winemaker Thomas Rivers Brown)
As always, we feel that focusing on the vineyard is essential to have great fruit to work with and, in turn, producing quality wines. In addition to having mature, well farmed vineyards for both of our Hobel bottlings, we had a favorable growing season with none of the stress of the previous vintages. Beautiful and bountiful fruit came in and vinifications progressed smoothly. The resulting wines are continuing to evolve now that they are bottled and it’s evident that there are no missing components. The 2016s could possibly be the best set of wines yet from Hobel.
The Reviews
"Hobel's 2016 Cabernet Sauvignon The Grain offers serious potential. Intensely savory and structured, the 2016 hits the palate with tremendous richness. Graphite, black cherry, sage and menthol are all pushed forward. Although the 2016 is naturally very young, the tannins are quite polished, which points to the quality and harmony of the vintage." Vinous, Antonio Galloni, March 2018
