1996 Spring Mountain Vineyard Reserve Red

Spring Mountain Vineyard was founded in 1968 in the Spring Mountain district of Napa Valley. In 1990 it was purchased by a group of investors led by Jacob Safra and the investors have subsequently also purchased two nearby properties, meaning that today the estate also includes Chateau Chevalier and Draper Vineyards. Altogether the three estates have nearly 800 acres, about 226 of which are vineyards. The estate produces a Bordeaux blend of Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Petit Verdot and Cabernet Franc. It also makes Sauvignon Blanc, Syrah and Viognier.

Napa Valley AVA is the most famous winemaking region in the United States and one of the most prestigious in the world. With nearly 43,000 acres of vineyards and more than 300 wineries, it is the heart of fine wine production in the United States. Winemaking started in Napa in 1838 when George C. Yount planted grapes and began producing wine commercially. Other winemaking pioneers followed in the late 19th century, including the founders of Charles Krug, Schramsberg, Inglenook and Beaulieu Vineyards. An infestation of phylloxera, an insect that attacks vine roots, and the onset of Prohibition nearly wiped out the nascent Napa wine industry in the early 20th century. But by the late 1950s and early 1960s Robert Mondavi and other visionaries were producing quality wines easily distinguishable from the mass-produced jug wines made in California’s Central Valley. Napa Valley’s AVA was established in 1983, and today there are 16 sub-appellations within the Napa Valley AVA. Many grapes grow well in Napa’s Mediterranean climate, but the region is best known for Cabernet Sauvignon. Chardonnay is also very successfully cultivated, and about 30% of the AVA’s acreage is planted to white grapes, with the majority of those grapes being Chardonnay,

81% Cabernet Sauvignon, 16% Merlot, 3% Petit Verdot