2011 Estate Cuvee State Lane Vineyard

56% Merlot, 36% Cabernet Sauvignon, 4% each Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot. Mildly dusty and with lots of lift – higher VA than most but with great complexity. Light as a feather! Dry finish after a sweet start. (JR)

The 2011 Estate Cuvee is a drop-dead gorgeous beauty. Sweet tobacco, wild flowers, mint, licorice, fennel and mint all meld together in a perfumed, gracious wine graced with stunning elegance and refinement. The 2011 is less obvious than either the 2010 or 2012, but it is more fragrant and perfumed. Clean, saline notes support the striking finish. The blend is 56% Merlot, 36% Cabernet Sauvignon, 5% Petit Verdot and 3% Cabernet Franc.

The 2011 Estate Cuvee State Lane Vineyard (1,800 cases produced from a blend of 66% Merlot, 36% Cabernet Sauvignon and the rest the other Bordeaux varietals) is soft, round and charming. It comes across as a Pessac-Leognan style of wine with some earthiness, sweet currant fruit, roasted herbs and a round, juicy finish. Drink it over the next decade. It is hard to believe the Kapcsandy family, of Hungarian descent, purchased this property previously known as State Lane Vineyard in Yountville (15.5 acres alongside the Yountville cross roads) in May, 2000. They have been on a winning track ever since the first releases. The harvest dates at Kapcsandy will give readers a specific indication of how cool 2009, 2010 and 2011 were. That began to change with 2012 and continues with an earlier, riper harvest in 2013 as well. In 2009, Kapcsandy harvested their small vineyard in Yountville between the beginning of October and October 29. In 2010, the harvest for the most serious wines began on October 19 and ended November 4. In 2011 it was even more significant, with the harvest starting in early October, but not finishing for some cuvees until October 27. In 2012, the harvest began in September, which is more normal, but unfurled over a full month, finishing October 25. Kapcsandy’s 2010s, like many of the Bordeaux varietals in Napa Valley, are exceptionally successful. This was my first look at these 2010s (almost all of them from bottle) and it has turned out to be a sensational vintage of deep, rich, full-bodied wines that are very expressive and focused with plenty of aging potential. It is a less glamourous and exuberant vintage compared to 2007 or 2002, but may evolve along the wines of the great 2001s which were more closed, firm and restrained. Nevertheless, it’s a vintage to jump on as most of the wines are just hitting the market in 2013 and early 2014. A more mixed vintage, the quality in 2011 is much more irregular than one normally sees in Napa Valley. Kapcsandy’s wines turned out well, although overall the ratings are the lowest I have given their wines since they started producing estate wines. Lou Kapcsandy and his son Louis said they did a Draconian selection process that began in the vineyard with radical leaf pulling and a selection of only the ripest bunches because the vintage was so challenging. Kapcsandy’s 2012s appear to be the finest wines they have made since the 2007s. Readers should keep an eye out for Kapcsandy’s two Rose cuvees, which are made from Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot. Tel. (707) 948-3100