Appellation: Napa Valley
57 lots hand-harvested and vinified separately: 25 lots selected for Cain Five

21 months

2001 is justifiably known as a great vintage on the North Coast. In my opinion, it is just about as good as any vintage can be in the Napa Valley. Everything came together—early budbreak in March, early bloom and perfect weather in late May, moderate ripening conditions in July and August. All of this led to a uniform and healthy crop. Weather conditions, critical at the top of Spring Mountain, all cooperated. Harvest began a little early, with the majority of blocks picked between mid-September and mid-October—just when we like it. With near perfect fruit, the winemaking was easy: the wines made themselves.

Mountain vineyards can be difficult, especially in late, cold years, or in hot, dry years. 2001 gave our demanding Cain Vineyard everything it needed to turn in a wine of great charm and character. Comparing it with the great vintages of the 1990s, the 2001 has more structure than the 1994, but it has almost the same density. The 2001 is also more ripe and fruity than the classically styled 1990 and 1991.

Here are my tasting comments: Color: dark. You can just see through it—barely. Hint of evolution. Nose: signature anise and orange peel form the top notes over a mid-range of oak and spice with a base of roasted meat. Palate: sweet entry, fully structured body, flows to balanced, slightly “grippy,” rustic tannins. Exhibits a pleasingly refined mouth feel and a long finish. Don’t ask me how the wine tastes—it’s up to you to tell us, but I know you will like it!

Our winemaking is simple: We believe that red wine is a partial extraction of the grape. Our goal is to get what we want and to leave the rest behind. At Cain, this means hand picking, gentle destemming, native-yeast fermentation, and manual pressing. The wine completes malolactic fermentation in the barrel, is blended early, is racked barrel-to-barrel, is egg-white fined, and is bottled without filtration.

ABOUT CAIN VINEYARD & WINERY
Cain Vineyard & Winery overlooks St. Helena from the top of Spring Mountain in the western hills of Napa Valley. The estate vineyard is planted to the five classic Bordeaux varieties: Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, Merlot, Malbec, and Petit Verdot. We make three wines: Cain Cuvée; Cain Concept, representing the classical benchlands of the Napa Valley; and our signature blend, Cain Five.

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