92 pts. Cellar Selection - Wine Enthusiast; 94 pts. Gold Medal - Beverage Testing Institute. The 2003 vintage is a remarkable 100% Cabernet Sauvignon wine that seduces you with its dark crimson color. Intense dried fruit aromas precede candied fruit and allspice. Medium tannins gracefully lead you on a journey of many nuance. Twenty-four months in new French Haute Futaie oak barrels adds a dimension of toasty vanilla. After bottling, the wine co... More Info ...

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Cabernet Sauvignon

Wine Report from the Fort Excerpt from: Scoop! Chardonnay grape tells Northside San Francisco how it came to California By Fred McMillin Send in the clones William Jarvis, with consulting winemaker Dimitri Tchelistcheff, has made a study of 14 clones of Cabernet Sauvignon from the United States, France, Argentina, Germany, Australia, and Italy. (A clone is a single “mother vine” and has disti... More Info ...

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96 points - Platinum Medal, Cellar Selection - Beverage Testing Institute. Our winemakers Dimitri Tchelistcheff, Ted Henry and William Jarvis only designate a wine as reserve when they feel it is extraordinary. The previous two Reserves were 1997 and 2001. This 2003 vintage is a wine of amazing finesse and grace. With a deep amethyst hue and a bouquet of clove and cherries, it is sure to intrigue you. Flavors of deep red berries are ample, and 25... More Info ...

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95 pts - Exceptional, Gold Medal - Beverage Testing Institute; William Jarvis made the mistake of his life in 1993 during midnight pump-overs when he accidentally pumped a third of a tank of Cabernet Franc into a tank of Cabernet Sauvignon. The experience was devastating, but after the fermentation completed the winemaker, Dimitri Tchelistcheff, said “This new “Bordeaux blend” turned out “not that bad.” In fact, it kept getting better with age! I... More Info ...

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94 pts - Exceptional, Gold Medal - Beverage Testing Institute; Judges' Choice - The San Francisco Chronicle Wine Competition: Lake William is the Cabernet Sauvignon blend which started out as a cellar mistake but is now a most sought after blend. It is named after the lake which borders and cools the estate vineyards that makes up the blend. Each vintage’s varietal composition varies dependent on the blending of our Winemaker Consultant, Dimitri ... More Info ...

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93 pts. - Gold Medal & Cellar Selection, The Beverage Testing Institute; 92 pts. - Wine Spectator; 93 pts. - Wine Enthusiast: A science lab project, commenced in the eighth grade, is the basis for this exciting new wine from Jarvis. Will Jarvis, son of the owners, picked the grapes and made a typical Jarvis wine for his project. Since it was an experiment he made just enough for a small barrel. When the wine had bottle aged 10 years and Will was ... More Info ...

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Cabernet Franc as a varietal often goes unrecognized on its own due to its popular use in blended wines. But Dimitri Tchelistcheff, our Winemaker Consultant, considers our Cabernet Franc to be one of the best wines he produces; which makes it no surprise that this varietal is one of our most sought after. The Jarvis 2005 Cabernet Franc has a deep lavender brilliance in the glass which adds to the delight of the drinking experience. Eighteen month... More Info ...

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Each year we pick each zone when it is at its maximum potential. As a result the 2006 Merlot harvest stretched from September 22nd to October 27th. Merlot is a varietal that does very well year after year on our gentle sloping vineyards. It is a key varietal in the Lake William blend, contributing deep amethyst hues and elegant flavors. A select portion of Merlot is bottled as a varietal wine which has become one of our most sought after wines. B... More Info ...

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Petit Verdot is a finicky little grape packed with a lot of power. As usual it was the last to ripen during the 2006 harvest and only took one day to pick. Petit Verdot contributes a beautiful deep color and black fruit flavor to our Lake William blend. Also, a small amount of the crop was bottled 100% varietal in 375ml bottles. This provides you a unique tasting experience of a varietal not commonly seen unblended. This Petit Verdot has a rich e... More Info ...

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92 points - Exceptional, Beverage Testing Institute. Our Tempranillo wine is in honor of Dimitri Tchelistcheff. Dimitri is our long time mentor and valued contributor to our winemaking. He has a special feeling for Tempranillo and thought it would do well here. He suggested planting just an acre to compliment our other wines. Its very name means “early” from the Spanish word “temprano”. It is our first red variety to harvest each year. More Info ...

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92 points - Exceptional, Beverage Testing Institute. This Finch Hollow Chardonnay is made of grapes from a special vineyard called “Finch Hollow”. It is a small plot that in previous years was harvested by flocks of Finches and Blackbirds. After all our vineyards were netted and completely harvested by ourselves, our Winemaker Consultant Dimitri Tchelistcheff, noted that it was a distinct terroir which contributed an intense tropical fruit charac... More Info ...

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93 points - Exceptional, Beverage Testing Institute. The Reserve Chardonnay is made from the same barrels of wine as the Finch Hollow Chardonnay. The Finch Hollow is that vineyard which was preferred by the birds prior to its netting. Winemaker Consultant Dimitri Tchelistcheff had us use wine from the top half of the barrels, a unique winemaking step that leads up to bottling it unfined and unfiltered so as to retain all the subtle flavor element... More Info ...

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Cool breezes from the San Francisco Bay insured a long “hang-time” for our mountain vineyards allowing the grapes to mature to perfection. Harvesting this Estate Chardonnay concluded in just under a month running the beginning of September through September 27th. The full bodied Estate Chardonnay is a very versatile wine being rounded by eight months in new French oak barrels with sur-lie aging yet still crispy as a result of light fining and fil... More Info ...

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