2013 12C Wines G3 Beckstoffer Georges III Cabernet Sauvignon

Twelve C stands for 12 degrees Centigrade, or 55 degrees Fahrenheit, which is the best temperature to store wine. The company’s debut release was a 2012 Cabernet Sauvignon. The wine is a single-vineyard, premium Cabernet Sauvignon made of grapes sourced from the Beckstoffer Georges III Vineyard, one of Napa’s most prestigious terroirs. Winemaker is Mike Smith, who has worked at Schrader, Maybach, Outpost and Rivers Marie, among other wineries.

Georges III Vineyard was first planted in 1895 by Napa Valley Pioneer Thomas Rutherford. In 1928 it was purchased by Beaulieu founder Georges de Latour, whose winemaker, the famous Andre Tchelistcheff, used the vineyard to make BV’s Rutherford Cabernets. The 300-acre vineyard is in Rutherford and is planted to Cabernet Sauvignon. Beckstoffer Vineyards owns and farms more than 3,600 acres of highly prestigious grape growing vineyards in Napa Valley, Mendocino County and the Red Hills of Lake County. A senior executive with Heublein in the 1960s, Andy Beckstoffer is credited with steering Napa Valley vintners towards improving farming and the quality of the grapes used for wine. Grapes from any Beckstoffer vineyards are considered among the finest available in California.

One of the most widely grown grape varieties, it can be found in nearly every wine growing region. A cross between Cabernet Franc and Sauvignon Blanc. It’s a hardy vine that produces a full-bodied wine with high tannins and great aging potential.