Birichino Peter Martin Ray Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon 2019

The Peter Martin Ray vineyard occupies a ridge in the Santa Cruz Mountains, on the range overlooking Silicon Valley, at nearly 500 metres above sea level, neighbouring Mount Eden and Monte Bello. Martin Ray planted Cabernet Sauvignon here in the mid-1950s, from cuttings brought from Château Margaux. The vines grow without irrigation on fractured, shallow Franciscan schist, farmed organically with very low yields.

The grapes are picked by hand in the early morning, on 13 and 14 September, then fully destemmed. Fermentation starts spontaneously with native yeasts and the maceration lasts twenty-two days. The wine is then aged for twenty-one months in French oak barrels, 20% of them new, without intermediate racking, and bottled without fining or filtration.

This wine reveals notes of blackcurrant, blackberry, violet, bitter cocoa, butterscotch, cedar, sweet spices and fresh herbs. The dense, complex palate rests on sappy, firm tannins that frame deep black fruit flavours. Fresh and long, the finish heralds remarkable ageing potential.

In the United States, 90% of the wine produced comes from California. It was the influx of gold prospectors to California that boosted the California wine industry in the mid-19th century, particularly in the Sonoma and Napa region. At the start of the 20th century, there were 800 wineries. From 1919 to 1933 Prohibition destroyed the vast majority of the California wine industry so that by 1933, only 140 wineries remained producing wine. It was only from 1960 that the wine industry began to recover from Prohibition and California was primarily known for the production of fortified wines (in the style of Port). It was also in the 1960s that some of the most famous estates were created (Mondavi, Heitz Wine Cellars, Stag's Leap Wine Cellars, etc...).



In 1976, a significant event took place: the legendary tasting competition better known as the "Judgment of Paris". He sees the greatest French wines opposing the new American wines. This May 24, an unexpected result shakes the world of wine, since to everyone's surprise, it is the United States which wins. However, this competition remains relatively unknown to the general public.



Today, there is no doubt that the United States produces great wines. Even though California largely monopolizes the reputation of American wines with its excellent Zinfandels, the state of Oregon produces some of the best Pinot Noir in the world and the state of Washington offers excellent Chardonnay, Merlot and Cabernet-Sauvignon.