Winemaking and more... Why Do You like Wine?
This is where you reveal to us if you really want to know about the reasons some wines taste so much better than others. Can you perhaps name just 3 Winemaking Techniques that can dramatically affect the character or quality of a wine? We want to let you in on the best of the best winemaking techniques and how these secrets are not so secret but they do indeed allow us to create the best expression of the harvest! Wherever you are on your journey, we just want to help make your Wine experiences more enjoyable and share our passion for making premium wine. Our Wine Names give clues to some aspect of geography, anticipated style or perhaps even a flavor in the wine. Enjoy this fun component as you read about the wines and discover the themes. choice.” —Julie
The secret to making a truly great wine is no different than learning any craft. Read, then practice, then practice more, then make a lot of mistakes. Let's just say though, that you have figured out how to grow perfect grapes, and now it is time to harvest them. When to harvest is a crucial decision and because our blocks of grapes are smaller, we can more precisely pick them at the perfect time. Our grapes are harvested with a uniform perfect ripeness which is essential for the retention of precious acidity. Now comes sorting, pressing, crushing, cold soaking, fermentation, extended maceration, and Oak barreling. What kind of Oak to use, and for how long? We know that our customers appreciate that every wine we make is made without a set timetable. All decisions are made based on what that wine needs to be perfect. No expense spared, ever. With smaller volumes to manage, we can swiftly change the course of the wine when it hits certain milestones. Finally, when it comes time to Blend the final wine with small amounts of Petit Verdot, Malbec, Merlot and Cab Franc, we have the luxury of using as much or as little as necessary to get it right. It is no different than a chef who knows just the right amount of salt to use. This small change is often the difference between a great meal and unforgettable dining experience! During the blending of one of our Hillsides, everyone recognized that adding just 0.25% of one blending component made all the difference in the final wine taste. Even more interesting was the fact that everyone also chose that specific blend in a blind tasting.
The Vineyards
Our custom lease agreements with Grape Growers throughout Napa and Sonoma allow us to get the grapes we feel are the best for the wine's structure and to achieve the desired profile. Many times, these small areas yield only a few tons of fruit. These few tons, however, make World Class wine. Here is something to contemplate…do you think it is possible that the orientation of the sun for just a few rows of vines can be that important in the development of some subtle flavors? And is it possible that other rows, just a few feet away, lack the perfect balance of acidity and tannin? Yes, small blocks of Vineyards can yield an extremely superior taste and we are dedicated to harvesting what we believe is the best of the best for our wines. Remember, we want to drink them too! And hopefully with you! These details and more can be discussed over a glass in person when you visit us. Our Recipe for Best Wine = Best Grapes. Best Winemaking Practices. Best Oak. Best Blending. Best People!
Consulting Winemaker
To make the perfect wine, you need someone that can be attentive to the smaller details, but also someone that has a broad vision for that Wine down the road. What do we expect at five years, seven years and 10 years+ in the cellar. This requires extreme respect for balance, and Patrick Saboe, a graduate of the Enology & Viticulture program at U.C. Davis, has it in spades. From our first conversation, it was evident that Patrick was willing to help us push the wine in any direction we wanted but he was even happier when he realized that we were more interested in revealing the wine’s best expression. By blending in other varieties such as Merlot, Petit Verdot, Malbec and Cabernet Franc, we can round out a velvet mid-palate and encourage a long smooth finish. With Patrick’s guidance we will continue to make world class wines by using: 1) top tier grapes picked at their peak for tannin and acid balance, 2) Fermentation mastery practices, and techniques including Cold Soaking and Extended Maceration without constraint of a schedule, 3) the best of the best tight grained French Oak and barrel aging, and 4) Blending until perfect balance is achieved. Every decision part of the wine making process will be done for the sole purpose of making the best finished Wine. Patrick is humble and has reached a level of Winemaking Mastery that seamlessly melds the Science and Art of Winemaking. One of Patrick’s famous rough paraphrased quotes is “Trust your palate and be honest about how your wine tastes. Use all your senses when evaluating your wine. Understand that there is no single moment of a wine’s life that is more important than any other moment. So, if and when you know a wine has reached perfection, drink it all.” Thank you Patrick. Now let's make some Vino! Pictured: Doc T with his hand on the Barrel of 2020 Creekside Cerise Pinot Noir. Below: Patrick carefully smelling aromatics on some great juice. Probably the refreshing scent of grapefruit coming off the Sauvignon Blanc.
Our Wines
“Bankfield Wines are only released if they meet the highest level of taste experience. To me, this means that…visually, they must be vibrant and almost hauntingly hypnotic upon swirling. They must exhibit an approach that truly stimulates the senses and evolves over the course of a glass. They must possess a velvety mid-palate, and a grip that coats the entire mouth, cheeks, and gums leaving you a lasting impression on the finish. Above all, the wine must be balanced, just right, where all the musical flavors flow seamlessly in harmony. I cannot express to you enough how thankful I am to get to create such an experience with you”
Doc T —Founder Bankfield Wines
Bankfield Valley Cabernet Sauvignon Series
The Valley Wines are all Bordeaux style Cabernet Sauvignons. The grapes are sourced from the most well-managed Vineyards in Napa and produce the very best of the best valley fruit. By Valley, we mean that the grapes are grown on lower elevations and will deliver a style of wine that perfectly pairs with a wide range of cheeses, cured meats, crackers and fruit jams. The tannins are usually softer and the resulting wine is lush with vibrant acidity. Each year, we re-evaluate the best blocks of vineyards that we believe will deliver the best tasting Wine. After fermenting and barreling the wines, we critique and patiently taste them while visualizing the path of that potential wine to determine which will become released as a Bankfield Wine. This is a serious yet extremely fun exercise that allows us to incorporate the Art of Tasting into the Science of Winemaking. The 2019 Harvest has given us 4 Single Barrels of stunning Wine from three different Valley areas of Napa: Oak Knoll, Rutherford, and Oakville. Each has a distinct profile of blended elements that I am sure you will enjoy over the course of the bottle. More information on the wine tasting profiles is available on the Purchase Page. Note: Each Wine has a Barrel number which indicates that only 300 bottles of wine is produced per Barrel.
2019 Bankfield Valley Oak Knoll Barrel #19107 is 94.75% Cab Sauvignon, 2 % PV, 1.5% Merlot, 1.25% Malbec, 0.5 % Cab Franc. 100% New French Oak (Vicard) 22 months.
2019 Bankfield Valley Rutherford Barrel #1910 is 94.5% Cabernet Sauvignon, 3% Petit Verdot, 1% Merlot, 1% Malbec, 0.5% Cab Franc. 100% New French Oak (TN Coopers) 22 months. Restaurant Only Edition.
2019 Bankfield Valley Rutherford Barrel #19112 is 94.5% Cab Sauvignon, 3.25% PV, 0.75% Merlot, 1% Malbec, 0.5% Cab Franc. As always 100% New French Oak (Bossuet). 22 months
Important to NOTE: The Rutherford Barrels are almost identical in blend but due to the starting Oak that was used, a slight blend change was needed to create the same end profile. This is always fun to perform blind. With only your taste buds, blend two different barrels within 0.5% without looking at your notes!
Bankfield Hillside Cabernet Sauvignon Series
The 2019 Bankfield Hillsides are an example of higher elevation Cabernet Sauvignon and were sourced at approximately 1800-2000 ft of elevation overlooking the area of Lake Henessey on a ridge which yields only 2.5 tons/acre. The steep elevation produces very concentrated fruit which results in bigger tannins and a very bold wine. These Hillsides Wines have mountain tannins that are perfect to pair with a juicy marbled steak of your choosing. We are pleased to offer three Single Barrels of Bankfield Hillside for 2019. Yes, we have 3 different Hillsides because we used slightly different starting Oak for each Wine. More information on these wines is available on the Purchase Page. Unfortunately, due to the fires of 2020, there will not be 2020 Hillside from this specific property. These 2019's are very special indeed.
2019 Bankfield Hillside Barrel #1921 was originally in Remond French Oak and the final blend is 93% Cabernet Sauvignon, 3.5% Petit Verdot, 1.5% Merlot, 1% Cab Franc, 1% Malbec. Concentrated Bold Black Cherry and Raspberry with a toasty caramel finish. Aged 22 months in New French Oak
2019 Bankfield Hillside Barrel #1936 was originally in Billon French Oak and the final blend is 93.5% Cabernet Sauvignon, 3.0% PV, 1.5% Merlot, 1.0% Malbec, 1.0% Cab Franc. Chocolate Covered Luxardp Cherries leap out of the glass. Aged 22 months in New French Oak
2019 Bankfield Hillside Barrel #1952 was originally in a Val de Loire French Oak and the final Blend is 93% CabS, 3.5% PV, 1.5% Merlot, 1% CabF, and 1% Malbec. Bold Ripe Red and Black Cherry, Espresso Coffee Bean. Aged 22 Months in New French Oak.
Bankfield Reserve
The 2019 Harvest produced an exceptional Valley wine from Oakville and has such been deemed a Reserve. This is the first Bankfield Valley Reserve and exhibits all the characteristics of Valley floor perfection. A lush, soft tannin expression of Red and Black Cherry-Raz fruit combined with creamy chocolate mocha. This wine pairs perfectly with itself! You probably will not want to share. We decided to leave it in the barrel a little longer since during our blending session it seemed to have been developing a texture that was still evolving. I am so glad we waited and re-performed the blending session 1 month before bottling. The new blending session revealed a wine that can very well be given perfect scores. Final Blend: 95.5% Cabernet Sauvignon, 2% PV, 0.75% Merlot, 0.75% Malbec, and 1% Cab Franc. 26 months in New Sansaud Oak.
Released April 1, 2022
2020 Bankfield Creekside Cerise Pinot Noir
A Cab Lover’s Pinot. “Since when did Pinot start tasting like this?”—Hodgy
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This Pinot is a gem of gems. We may not produce a Pinot Noir every year but when we do, you should probably consider getting a case or two. All the right conditions were in our favor for this 2020 Vintage of Creekside Cerise Pinot Noir. Grapes for Creekside Cerise Pinot Noir were sourced at 600 ft on the eastern edge of Rodger’s Creek Vineyard in the Petaluma Gap. This Pinot is filled with aromas of bright cherry and cool raspberry. The mid-palate is absolutely bursting with flavor and extends for a very lengthy finish. We blended this pinot 96% 2020 with 4% 2021. If you are wondering why and want to learn about this…call Doc T! Clone 4 Pommard, and Clone 667 provide great structure, backbone, and the resulting finish is long and intriguing. We used an exquisite Damy French Oak barrel to impart just the right amount texture for the mouthfeel. Inspiration for the name Creekside Cerise was from our good friends M&R since they convinced me to make a Pinot that could rival great Burgundy. Jokingly, they promised to purchase the entire Barrel if I messed up the project. They knew my theme for naming Wines was geographically influenced, and that the name needed to suggest something about the Wine’s main character. We brainstormed and honored the French word for Cherry in the Cerise component as it is the predominant flavor of most Pinot Noirs. And Creekside refers to the name of the Vineyard, Rodgers Creek. Due to the extremely limited availability of grapes at this quality, we have only 25 Cases available for release date of Feb 21, 2022.
2021 Bankfield Seaside Citrus Blast Sauvignon Blanc
We are so pleased to introduce to you our 2021 Bankfield Seaside Citrus Blast Souvignon Blanc. The goal that Laura and I had was two-fold. We wanted to make a Sauvignon Blanc that would be the ultimate partner to zesty vinaigrette based green salads and have enough zingy acidity to balance out fish, lobster, and crab cakes. With these goals in mind we were very fortunate to obtain premium grapes from a beautiful Napa vineyard in Yountville that had the profile we were looking for. Notes of fresh grapefruit on the nose quickly becomes a citrus blast that flows seamlessly into a balanced layered mineral finish. On a hot summer day this refreshing Sauv Blanc is also great with fresh cut fruit or ceviche. Enjoy.
SOLD OUT!
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2022 upcoming vintage only 50 cases available by allocation only
