A flavorful, expansive blend of our cool-climate Carneros Merlot, with about 1/3 of the grapes from nearby Hyde Vineyards, blended with lush Cabernet Franc grown in Rutherford hillside forward soils.

The bottle reads “Rutherford” from our blending & bottling with our friends at Alpha Omega Winery. This is the most new-world Virage yet thanks to a warm vintage. Dark stone fruit and dark chocolate, laced with signature Virage minerality. A warming Napa Valley wine, but as always, bright acidity on the mouth-watering finish, leaving you ready for a bite… or more…

But what a season. The very cool growing season of 2010 took an abrupt turn for all of Napa Valley - even in Carneros - with a couple of severe heat strikes beginning in August. A friend warned me not to trim the sunburned shoulders too early! Shoulda listened. For us, the final September searing - after snipping away more raisins! - added a layer of warmth over the slowly-developed flavors that we love from cooler-climate growing regions. Finishes with bittersweet cocoa and espresso.

[January 2022 winemaker notes update: Stunned by the balance emerging in this wine, extremely fresh black cherry fruit bursting on the nose, elegant density without heat or rough edges, layers of minerality, graphite, toasty tobacco, and leather, all beginning to feel like the beloved 2007! Far surpassing winemaker expectation here.]