Coho Wines
2011 Headwaters Napa Valley Red Wine
Red Blend
California: Napa Valley
Mission Briefing
Codename:Operation Allocation
Welcome to the Wine Spies Intrigue Awards for 2015! Each year we recognize our most popular and sought-after wines from the previous year - while giving our Operatives one final chance to secure some of the winning wines for themselves.
We might never show this wine again, so grab yours while you still can!
Today’s 94 point Coho Wines 2011 Headwaters Napa Valley Red Wine is our Wine Spies 2015 Intrigue Awards winner for Top Red Blend and also an allocation-only wine - unless you’re an Operative… Coho gave us special access to their newest Headwaters release, a wine that is highly-allocated and highly-prized.
On opening, this delicious blend of 72% Cabernet Sauvignon, 19% Merlot, 9% Petite Verdot is shy and reserved. After an hour or more in the decanter the wine simply sings. If you don’t have the patience to decant, simply swirl and swirl.
Take sniffs and sips in between and marvel at just how beautifully the wine opens up. Once it does open, it unveils a cornucopia of delights for the senses. We recommend this method, which is a delightful way to see how a wine can undergo dramatic transformation with a little bit of oxygenation.
This wine is balanced, medium bodied, fragrant and very delicious. Drinking beautifully now, but good for another decade or more.
Very highly recommended.
Tasting Profile
| Look: | Stunning ruby red, from core to edge of glass. |
|---|---|
| Smell: | Decant this wonderful wine and aromas leap from the glass. Bold blackberry, black cherry and cassis are wrapped around fig, sassafras, leather, dried beef, sweet spice, black pepper, cocoa nib and cedar. |
| Taste: | Rich and layered and oh, so balanced, with red and black fruits from the nose that meld with cigar box, tobacco leaf and white pepper. |
| Finish: | Extra long and somewhat bright, giving the wine a mouthwatering quality. |
| Pairing: | Enjoy this delicious wine with a gourmet pizza, a pile of spaghetti and meatballs or a juice prime rib. |
What the Winery Says
- Winemaker
- Brooks Painter
- Varietal
- Red Wine
- Composition
- 72% Cabernet Sauvignon
- ~
- 19% Merlot
- ~
- 9% Petite Verdot
- Appellation
- Napa Valley
- Pre-fermentation
- 3 day cold soak at 50 degrees F.
- Fermentation
- Approximately 13 days, malo-lactic fermentation in barrel
- Aging
- 21 months
- Aging
- 40% new French Oak
- Bottling date
- July 31, 2013
- Production
- 940 cases
- Release date
- November 1, 2014