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JUNE WINE OF THE MONTH
2019 SUTRO Wine Cabernet Sauvignon Alexander Valley Warnecke Ranch
So many of the wines and winemakers we have highlighted and awarded over the years have an artistic connection:
Cameron Stoffel, owner and winemaker of Ultima Tulie Wines, is the artist on all his labels; blending femininity with nature, the labels are mixed media and have a photographic depiction of a woman. Cameron’s Syrah/Petite Sirah blend won best red blend at our 2022 Under the Radar California competition.
Actor-turned-winemaker Matt Espiro Jaeger, whose extensive credits include Yellowstone, released the inaugural vintage of his Fuil Wines and Tábla label in 2022 and garnered several awards in our Under the Radar California competition and a high score from Wine Enthusiast.
Steve Alden, former photojournalist with Newsday and the National Geographic Society, is essentially a one-person operation at Murder Ridge, the most honored winery at our 2022 Under the Radar California competition. Steve’s stunning pictures of nature and wildlife can be found on Murder Ridge Winery’s website.
It is no coincidence, then, that we occasionally use the phrase “wine as art” to describe something notable…extraordinary. Our June wine of the month, the 2019 SUTRO Wine Cabernet Sauvignon Alexander Valley Warnecke Ranch, continues this trend.
On Day 3 of the recent Alexander Valley Cabernet Academy, attended by our senior writer and co-founder, Steve Rochford, 13 industry professionals were driven up a windy dirt road shrouded by fog in the Mayacamas for a discussion (and tasting) of the impact of elevation on wine. On the drive, Alice Warnecke Sutro, founder and owner of SUTRO Wine, gave a delightful talk on the history of Sonoma County art and counterculture, interspersed with her family history in the county, which traces back to the 19th century. We learned that her grandfather, John Carl Warnecke, architect to President Kennedy, actually designed the President’s gravesite and the eternal flame. In her storytelling Alice is poised, erudite, and downright charming. So is her wine.
Alice has a BA from Stanford University in Art History and graduated from the California College of the Arts MFA program in Painting and Drawing. Her current medium is creating portraits as a live performance. Alice founded SUTRO Wine in 2012 and grows grapes for her label on Warnecke Ranch and Vineyard, which has been in her family for more than a century.
We tasted the 2019 SUTRO Warnecke Ranch Cabernet Sauvignon as one of five wines chosen for a discussion of geology and soil during the Cabernet Academy. Warnecke Ranch is known for its volcanic soil and the wines made from grapes grown there are reflective of the terroir, but not entirely predictive. We love when wine surprises us and arouses our senses. The SUTRO Warnecke Ranch Cabernet Sauvignon, which spent 20 months in 25% new Hungarian oak, is distinct from the start, with pronounced intensity of black tea on the nose, followed by black cherry, rosemary, and tomato leaf. The black tea and black cherry carry through to the palate, along with black pepper, herbs, and chocolate. This wine has high acid, well-integrated, soft tannins, and a long finish. A wine with a real spirit and soul; a wine to be savored. Revel in opening a bottle now or over the next 10-12 years.
One of the great benefits of Cabernet Sauvignon in a world-class growing region like Alexander Valley is that you get enough warmth to ripen the grape properly and volcanic soil to stress the vines and concentrate the flavors. These wines are thoughtful; not overly extracted, like what you may find in other parts of the state. And more reasonably priced. We would put the 2019 SUTRO Wine Cabernet Sauvignon Alexander Valley Warnecke Ranch ($70) up against any California Cab of double the price and not just be getting a better value but also a better wine.
An accomplished artist carrying on a family tradition by making distinct, balanced, exceptional Cabernet Sauvignon from their century-old vineyard in Alexander Valley. Sounds like “wine as art” to us and it sounds (and smells and tastes) like our June wine of the month.
Learn more about SUTRO Wine, purchase their wine, and follow them here:
@sutrowine
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