Mission Codename Zero to 60
My fellow Cabernet-loving Ops!
Boy, do we have a treat for you today. We’re dropping the dime on an uber-micro-production, artisanally crafted, locals-only discovery. This is the word of mouth, “I know a guy” kind of tight-lipped tip on a producer you’d otherwise never know about.
And of course, we’re turning it loose at an unprecedented price.
Our good friend Bobby Moy is the face behind Chiron. He’s one of the friendliest guys you’ll meet, and one of the hardest working winemakers around.
Bobby got his start working under THE TRB (Thomas Rivers Brown for the unwashed out there) at Tamber Bey. While there he studied the playbook that powers Rivers-Marie, Schrader, Maybach, Kinsella and many other such ultra-high-end cult labels. He soaked up everything he could about the winemaking details and approach.
Then he started his consulting business called Righteous Juice, along with Chiron as his family’s passion project. Production is always tiny - around 100-200 cases per wine. So, when he rang us with an offer to grab a handful of cases we jumped at the chance.
His goal has been to make a lineup of Cabernet that can easily compete with the $150-$200 forces out there. In an interview with The Wine Write, he said “I have several friends who do charge that much. They taste my wines and tell me the Chiron Cabs are as good or better than their own.”
Pure sexiness, with a polished, round, and expansive style that you dream about, it brings together both sides of the Mayacamas which split Napa and Sonoma (think Pride Mountain) as the fruit is from Mount Veeder, Spring Mountain, and Knights Valley, a ‘Greatest Hits of The Peaks’ compilation of sorts. Rich blackcurrant, blackberry coulis, and loganberry collide with volcanic minerality, dusty earth, and savory spices. Resting in 70% new French oak for 26 months adds more of that toasty decadence. The mountain tannins have resolved yet remain sturdy, suggesting a long life ahead.
Truly lives up to how Wine Advocate defines these exceptional 2019s “a vintage that is going to make a lot of Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon lovers, in particular, very happy.” Like its namesake Bugatti Chiron we expect zero to 60 in 2.3 kinda sellout. Maybe it doesn’t cost $3,300,000 but it sure drinks about that richly.
Very little of this one, but what a treat it is.
What the Winery Says
2019 'Mountain Reserve' Napa & Sonoma Cabernet Sauvignon
- Winemaker
- Bobby Moy
- Varietal
- 100% Cabernet Sauvignon
- Vintage
- 2019
- Alcohol
- 15.0%
- Appellations
- Mount Veeder, Spring Moutain, Knights Valley
- Blend
- 61% Napa County, 39% Sonoma County
- Soils
- Low vigor alluvial Mayacamas loam and Aiken
- Aging
- 26 months
- Barrels
- 70% new French oak