CASE PRICE = $42.99 per bottle (add 12+ quantity to your basket)
Wine Spectator's Wineries to Watch: Five rising stars in Napa Valley
By James Laube - Issue: November 15th, 2009
http://www.winespectator.com/magazine/show/id/40929
About This Wine:Antica is an Antinori Family estate in the Napa Valley. The family’s winemaking heritage dates back 26 generations and over 600 years in Italy. ‘Antica’ represents Antinori California, and fulfills the family’s longstanding desire to produce beautiful wines in Napa Valley.
Vintage 2008 was the year of the viticulturist as the Mother Nature provided all types of weather patterns for the growing season. From drought conditions to rain to frost, special attention by our vineyard team was needed to ensure a quality harvest. At Antica, we are fortunate that the Antinori Family brings more than 625 years of wine growing experience and knowledge which guided to the release of this wine of stunning concentration and purity
Cabernet Sauvignon grapes were harvested from the estate’s 24-acre Townsend Vineyard. At an elevation of 1460 feet with volcanic soils, the vineyard is planted at a vine density of 2233 vines per acre and divided between four distinct Cabernet Sauvignon clones that contribute to the wine’s complexity and rich, concentrated fruit.
Ratings & Reviews
91-93 Points - Robert Parker's Wine Advocate:The 2010 Cabernet Sauvignon is classy, elegant and refined. Naturally it is very, very young, which definitely comes through, but the raw materials are there for this to develop into a terrific wine. Dark red berries, flowers, smoke, incense, and licorice are some of the many nuances that are woven into the intricate, mineral-infused finish. The 2010 is all class and elegance. Anticipated maturity: 2015-2020.
I was deeply impressed with the wines I tasted from Antica, the Antinori family’s outpost on Atlas Peak. Even though Antinori has been involved with this property since the late 1980s, these are essentially the first wines the family has made in its own facility. The Chardonnay is aged in 30-33% new barrels, sees batonnage for the first three months and undergoes partial malolactic fermentation. The Cabernet Sauvignon is aged in 55-65% new oak, while the single-vineyard Cabernet from the Townsend vineyard sees 80% new barrels. Incidentally, for readers who can find them, both 2008 Cabernets are terrific. - Antonio Galloni (Dec 2011)
92 Points - Robert Parker's Wine Advocate (2009 vintage):The 2009 Cabernet Sauvignon comes across as a bit more reticent and inward next to the superb 2008, but it, too, is a gorgeous wine. Dark red fruit, licorice, smoke and tar are some of the nuances that flow from this layered, gorgeous Cabernet Sauvignon. The 2009 was bottled just two months ago. It will almost certainly be even better in a few years’ time. A mid-weight, gracious wine, the 2009 should drink well to age 20 or so. In 2009 the blend includes 1.5% Petit Verdot. Anticipated maturity: 2019-2029.
I was deeply impressed with the wines I tasted from Antica, the Antinori family’s outpost on Atlas Peak. Even though Antinori has been involved with this property since the late 1980s, these are essentially the first wines the family has made in its own facility. The Chardonnay is aged in 30-33% new barrels, sees batonnage for the first three months and undergoes partial malolactic fermentation. The Cabernet Sauvignon is aged in 55-65% new oak, while the single-vineyard Cabernet from the Townsend vineyard sees 80% new barrels. Incidentally, for readers who can find them, both 2008 Cabernets are terrific. - Antonio Galloni (Dec 2011)
90 Points - Robert Parker's Wine Advocate (2008 vintage):"The 2008 Cabernet Sauvignon is a European take on Napa fruit with lots of terroir, earth, spice, black cherry, black currant, cedar, licorice and foresty notes. Medium-bodied and elegant with sweet tannins and excellent fruit, it should drink nicely for up to a decade.
As evidenced by these two impressive offerings, Piero Antinori’s project on Atlas Peak is paying big dividends in terms of quality. Consultant Renzo Cotarella is the advising winemaker." - Robert Parker (Dec 2010)
94 Points - Robert Parker's Wine Advocate (2007 vintage):"The finest wine I have yet tasted from Piero Antinori’s rocky hillside
vineyard on Soda Canyon Road in southeast Napa, this 2007 Cabernet
Sauvignon boasts a dense purple color along with a rich, sumptuous
bouquet of licorice, creme de cassis, and smoky oak. This opulent,
fleshy, full-bodied wine exhibits beautiful purity and concentrated
fruit. It should age nicely for 15-20 years. Impressive ... and
reasonably priced!" - Robert Parker, (12/2009)
94 Points - Wine Enthusiast Magazine (2007 vintage):
"Grown on Antinori’s original property, high on Atlas Peak, although
you’d never know it from searching the front or back labels. It’s a very
fine wine, dry and elegantly constructed, with little of the baby fat
over-the-topness that affects some Napa Cabs. Within that firm structure
are extraordinarily complex blackberry, black currant and spicy plum
flavors. Delicious now despite the firm tannins, and should develop over
the next 8–10 years, at least." — S.H. (12/31/2010)
93 Points - Wine & Spirits Magazine (2007 vintage):
""In 1993, Antinori purchased the Townsend Vineyard, a property adjacent
to the family's Atlas Peak estate that's planted to four clones of
cabernet sauvignon. In 2007, the small concentrated berries from that
vineyard produced this tight and savory red, a wine with length and
breadth, seriously delicious. The fruit ranges from sweet red currant to
lush blueberry and blackberry, hinting at eucalyptus and herbs along
the way. The earthiness of the tannin provides stature to all that fruit
and will sustain it through long years of development in the cellar."
92-94 Points - Wine Spectator Magazine (2006 vintage):"Floral berry and currant
aromas carry over to the palate. Tight and focused, this shows early
signs of complexity, offering fine depth and length." (2007 Web Only)
