Big Basin Homestead Red Blend 2014
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Robert
Parker
Product Details
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Winemaker Notes
Aromatic with great body, balance and finish, this is a wine that reveals the exceptional vineyards behind it. The wine possesses a beautiful dark red/purple color with an exuberant nose of black and red raspberries, red currants, crushed rocks and hints of crushed flowers and anise. Bright and expressive on the palate with a melange of red and black fruit, mouth coating tannins and a nice long finish. The moderate alcohol level and good acidity make this a great food wine and one that is likely to age exceptionally well, however, it is very approachable.
Professional Ratings
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
The juicy, red fruited, spicy, meaty and leather-scented 2014 Homestead (35% Mourvedre, 27% Grenache, 19% Carignan and the rest Syrah and Cabernet Sauvignon) is medium to full-bodied, nicely textured, balanced and loaded with character. It's beautiful already, but has the density and balance to evolve through 2024.
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Located in the heart of the Santa Cruz Mountains, Big Basin Vineyards is terraced into a steep hillside first planted to grape vines by French immigrants over 100 years ago. Their winery and the vineyards they work with are located at sites in the Santa Cruz and Gabilan Mountains that are as beautiful as they are exceptional for grape growing. They farm organically and practice minimal-intervention winemaking with the goal of producing wines that transparently and authentically express site and variety.
Big Basin believes that their choice of vineyards, picking at the right time to retain intensity and elegance, and minimalistic winemaking practices are the keys to producing more aromatic and ethereal wines - new world wines with old world soul. Owner and winemaker Bradley Brown has been on a 20 year quest to produce beautiful and soulful wines. Winemaker Blake Yarger joined the team in 2017 and together they are always fine tuning practices to more transparently express the vineyards.
California is a winemaking colossus; by itself it is the fourth largest producer in the world. Red wine accounts for 56% of the total by volume, and red grapes 63% of total acres planted. In addition, a number of California red wines are heralded as being among the most prestigious and sought-after wines in the world.
While the state’s incredibly diverse geography, soils and microclimates allow for a wide array of styles, the key factor unifying California red wine is the abundance of sunshine and a long, consistent growing season. This leads to well-developed fruit marked both by impressive ripeness and balancing acidity.
The state’s most famous red wine region, of course, is Napa Valley, where Cabernet Sauvignon reigns as king. But California boasts a wealth of other impressive appellations. The much larger and climatically varied Sonoma County also produces world class California Cabernet, along with wonderful examples of California Pinot Noir and Zinfandel.
Fine versions of Cabernet and Zinfandel hail from Paso Robles as well, which is also gaining fame with Rhone varietals like Syrah and Grenache. As for Pinot Noir, terrific examples can be found from AVA’s such as Anderson Valley, Carneros, Santa Lucia Highlands and Sta. Rita Hills. Wineries in Santa Barbara and San Luis Obispo Counties are making wonderful Syrahs, and the Sierra Foothill appellations are proving to be an experimental hotbed, with Italian and Spanish varietals employed to great effect.
This of course is a mere sketch. The subject of California red wine is as deep and broad as an ocean, and absolutely a joy to explore!