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Broken Promises and the Stags Leap Cut
In late 2010, with storm clouds still entrenched over Napa, we cut a deal -- one that many would call the greatest bargain of the crisis years. Frank Grasso's tiny production Cabernet off his Olive Ridge Vineyard had been farmed to just 2.5 tons per acre in 2005. The vinification had been long and edgy, magnifying color, pushing the envelope on extraction. The attack would be massive. The texture dense, chewy and briary. The finish was muscled and persistent, laced with fine, dusty Stags Leap tannins.
Had Grasso been interested just in profit, he would have sold every drop as many others did in early 2008. But, in lieu of hastening the release in light of the plummeting Dow and the Bear Stearns debacle, Grasso stuck to his guns, holding back his first vintage of Olive Ridge Cabernet Sauvignon as planned. In the end, he'd age that 2005 for two years in new French cooperage, allowing tannins to soften. Then another two in bottle before the 2010 release.
The 2005 Grasso Cabernet Sauvignon Olive Ridge Vineyard was indeed spectacular in the fall of 2010. But the market that greeted it was anything but.
When we got the call in November 2010 from Frank Grasso's national sales manager, telling us about the 2005 Olive Ridge, we were all ears. We knew all about the piping hot Coombsville appellation, its warm summer days and unusually cool nights. We'd already treated members to Tom Farella's brilliant Cabernets, as well as Jeff Mathy's Vellum. Both of those sleekly cut powerhouses sported superb concentration, as well as the lithe blue chip structure of their Stags Leap neighbors. Knowing where Olive Ridge was situated, we expected nothing less from Grasso.
Fred the Fedex Guy dropped off a bottle each of the 2005 and 2006 Olive Ridge Cabernet Sauvignons on the morning of November 12, 2010. We tasted those wines three days later. On the 16th, we returned the sales manager's call and did what we always did back then. First, we worked the price on your behalf. Then, we cut not one deal -- but two. Or so we thought.
Half of Frank Grasso's 2005 production disappeared on a WineAccess winter morning -- 125 of the miniscule 250 case production -- at less than half the $65/bottle price the rest of the world would pay. Two months later, with buyer feedback just as expected, we lobbed in an email to the sales guy, reminding him of our "understanding" for the 2006. Then, we flagged that email in a bookmarked folder and set a trigger to alert us in 8 months time. In retrospect, we should have set it to four.
By the time Frank Grasso released OUR 2006 "Olive Ridge Cabernet Sauvignon" in mid-2011, not only were the storm clouds lifting, but too many others had discovered Coombsville -- and, of course, Olive Ridge. When we didn't get a quick response to our email reminder, we called. And when that call fell on deaf ears, we called again. Then again. Finally, we caught the sales manager on his cell. That's when we heard the familiar "ahems" and the nauseating "sorrys", as well as the promise to reach back out the following spring. He'd send us a bottle of the 2007. Another of the 2008. Yeah. Right.
To those who suggest we've lost our swagger, put a clamp on it. The truth is, when we called two months ago, feigning belief in the sales manager's promise to set aside a bit of the 2007 Grasso Olive Ridge Cabernet Sauvignon for WineAccess, we were just setting the bait. In this crazy sellers' market, Frank Grasso's Stags Leap winery clients are now dropping $6500/ton for these top pedigree Cabernet clusters. The sales manager didn't have to sell any more. He only had to take orders. He didn't even try to soften the blow, telling us simply and curtly that less than 30 cases remained of the 2007 -- all earmarked for Bay Area restaurants. If he had more, he would have been glad to hand them over. Grrrr.
"We get it," we said, though we surely didn't. Then we reeled in the line. "We prefer the 2008 anyway. Since you haven't released it yet, you've got plenty!" Check. And mate.
The 2008 Grasso Cabernet Sauvignon "Olive Ridge Vineyard" is the finest release to date off this superb, three-acre estate. The second growing season of Robert Parker's three vintage Napa Valley trifecta was largely cool, though punctuated with searing heat spikes. That heat would take its toll up in Calistoga and in the wide spaces of Yountville. But here in Coombsville and just a couple miles north in Stags Leap, those cool nights kept the sunstroke in check. The superb drainage on these rocky soils kept the vines refreshed. Olive Ridge never missed a beat.
Opaque purple to the edge, with explosive aromas of blackberry preserves, spiked with crème-de-cassis, laced with new wood cedar. Rich, powerful and massive on the attack, with superb ripe currant/blackberry concentration. But just as was the case in 2005, it's the fabulous mouth feel of the 2008 that most tells this story. Dense, chewy and oh-so-briary, the texture is both sleek and muscular, built for the long haul, yet still marvelously primary. While it's going to be tough not to polish off a bottle with our grilled rib eye tonight, at Olive Ridge, patience pays massive dividends.
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Tasting Notes
2008 Grasso Cabernet Sauvignon Olive Ridge Vineyard Napa Valley
"Opaque purple to the edge, with explosive aromas of blackberry preserves, spiked with crème-de-cassis, lashed with new wood cedar. Rich, powerful and massive on the attack, marvelously primary, with superb ripe currant/blackberry concentration. Dense, briary and muscular but still cloaked in velour. While it's tough not to polish off a bottle with anything off the grill right now, as has been the case for four years running on Frank Grasso's Olive Ridge, patience pays healthy dividends. Drink now-2016."
-- WineAccess Travel Log
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