Cain Cuvée (cue-vay means “blend”) is a new style of Cabernet blend. This wine is not all about Big Oak and Inky, Drying Tannins. In our Cain Cuvée, we look for bright aromas to combine with a mouthwateringly fresh palate and a silky finish—just the thing to complement today’s lighter and spicier dishes.

Cuvée NV3 is once again a blend of three varieties and two very enticing vintages. Lots selected for this wine from 2003 exhibited fine structure, distinct perfumy aromas, delicate spiciness, and a long finish. The ripeness of lots included from 2002 add body, roundness, and richness to the mouthfeel. The combination yields an eminently drinkable wine, very versatile with food, and with the complexity of wines at twice the price.

To blend the NV3 Cuvée, we drew on fruit from the Cain Vineyard, from other vineyards on Spring Mountain and Diamond Mountain, as well as from highly regarded vineyards along the Oakville and Rutherford benches of the Napa Valley proper.

The winemaking is simple: gentle handling of the fruit, native yeast, and individual lot fermentation, with maceration appropriate to the desired level of concentration. The wine was blended early in the summer following the 2003 harvest, barrel aged for about 15 months, and bottled in the spring of 2005. On February 1, 2006, after one year of bottle aging, 12,721 cases were released.