Inglenook Rutherford Sauvignon Blanc 2019
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Robert
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James
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The 2019 Sauvignon Blanc displays a stunning array of bright aromas including lemongrass, white peach, and Asian pear. This fresh, captivating wine was aged sur lies, giving it a rich texture. An intriguing flinty minerality emerges in the finish.
Blend: 76% Sauvignon Blanc, 24% Semillon
Professional Ratings
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
Composed of 76% Sauvignon Blanc and 24% Semillon, the 2019 Sauvignon Blanc offers intense notes of struck match, lemon tart and green apples, plus hints of white peaches and elderflower. Medium-bodied, crisp and minerally in the mouth, it has a seriously racy backbone and refreshing, mineral-tinged finish.
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James Suckling
This has fresh aromas of green apple, citrus zest and guava, as well as some nettles and herbs. It’s medium-bodied with bright acidity and tangy lemon flavors.
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James
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Robert
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Robert
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A decade later, Francis Ford Coppola purchased 1,500 acres of this historic property and revived Captain Niebaum's fine winemaking tradition. In 1995, Niebaum-Coppola acquired the remainder of the property and restored the Inglenook Estate to its original dimensions.
Capable of a vast array of styles, Sauvignon Blanc is a crisp, refreshing variety that equally reflects both terroir and varietal character. Though it can vary depending on where it is grown, a couple of commonalities always exist—namely, zesty acidity and intense aromatics. This variety is of French provenance. Somm Secret—Along with Cabernet Franc, Sauvignon Blanc is a proud parent of Cabernet Sauvignon. That green bell pepper aroma that all three varieties share is no coincidence—it comes from a high concentration of pyrazines (herbaceous aromatic compounds) inherent to each member of the family.
The Rutherford sub-region of Napa Valley centers on the town of Rutherford and covers some of Napa Valley’s finest vineyard real estate, spanning from the Mayacamas in the west, to the Vaca Mountains on the other side of the valley.
Inside of the Rutherford AVA, bordering the Mayacamas, is a stretch of uplands called the Rutherford Bench. (These bench lands technically run the length of Oakville as well). Mountain runoff creates deep, well-drained, alluvial soils on the bench, giving vine roots plenty of reason to permeate deep into the ground. The result is wine with great structure and complexity.
Rutherford Cabernet Sauvingons and Bordeaux Blends garner substantial attention for their enticing fragrances of dusty earth and dried herbs, broad and juicy mid-palates and lush and fine-grained tannins. The sub-appellation claims some of the valley’s most prized vineyards today, namely Caymus, Rubicon and Beckstoffer Georges III.
It is also home to Napa’s most influential and historic personalities. Thomas Rutherford, responsible for the appellation's name, made serious investments here in grape growing and wine production between the years of 1850 to 1880. Gustave Niebaum purchased a large swath of land and completed his winery in 1887, calling it “Inglenook.” Today this remains the oldest bonded winery in California. Georges Latour founded Beaulieu Vineyard in 1900, making it the oldest continuous winery in the state. Latour also hired the famous enologist, André Tchelistcheff, a man credited for single-handedly defining the modern Napa winemaking style.