Louis XIV
2017 Cabernet Sauvignon
Rutherford - Estate Grown
In 1669, Louis XIV began planting the highest quality oak trees in the forests of France to continue to produce the straightest masts for his ships. Today, only a few rare oak trees from this period survive in sustainably planted state-owned forests. Each year a small selection of these trees, now more than 350 years old, are constructed into oak barrels. In 2016, only 100 barrels were crafted from three oak trees grown in the Réno-Valdieu state forest, creating the Futaie Artistique Barrel Series. Of these 100, only one holds our 2016 St. Supéry "Louis XIV" Napa Valley, Rutherford Estate Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon. Micro-parcels were selected for their purity of fruit and were used to create the finest example of Rutherford Cabernet Sauvignon. Handpicked and hand sorted, this wine has a remarkably even texture and exquisite fine-grained tannins. The wine is a true reflection of the sophistication and elegance of the unique Rutherford terroir.
Winemaker, St. Supéry Estate Vineyards & Winery
Michael was raised on a vineyard in Australia's Barossa Valley that his family settled six generations ago in 1845. While Michael's informal wine industry training began in childhood, his winemaking career formally began in the mid-1980s.
Over the course of the past thirty years, Michael has progressed from cellar hand to Vice President, Winemaker at St. Supéry, where he built a state-of-the-art winery, which employs techniques of double hand sorting with old world punch down maceration in small lot open top fermenters, along with the more recent technologies, including optical sorting. Michael first worked as St. Supéry's winemaker from 1996 to 2001 and returned as the winemaker again in 2009 after a sabbatical where he expanded his scope by building a winery and planting a mountain vineyard. During his tenure at St. Supéry, he has been instrumental in the continuous improvements to both the Dollarhide Estate Vineyard and the winemaking program. Michael created the distinctive style that made the winery a benchmark producer of Napa Valley Sauvignon Blanc, and developed our first Bordeaux varietal-based blends.
Michael's credentials include accolades from some of the most esteemed experts in the industry, including oenologist and consultant Michel Rolland, with whom he collaborated with to help develop St. Supéry's proprietary red and white Bordeaux varietal blends, Élu and Virtú. Rolland says, "Michael Scholz is on my list of great winemakers from around the world."
Country born: Australia
Education: Roseworthy College (now a part of the University of Adelaide)
Years in the wine industry: 30+ years
Winemaking Philosophy:
The winemaker's choice of oak is like a chef's choice of ingredients. The barrels give us an opportunity to enhance expression and encourage structure and maturity. The natural combination of the soil, the harvest season and the oak form the future of what you'll taste in two years, or many years later.
Winemaker, St. Supéry Estate Vineyards & Winery
Michel began his work as an oenologist in 1973, a time when modern wine was in its infancy. In 1985 he was offered the opportunity to study the ways to maximize the potential of California's wines, and his life as a global winemaking consultant began. He has since worked on four continents, more than a dozen countries, and over 150 different proprieties. Michel continues to advise clients around the world, in addition to serving as the winemaker for properties in Argentina and Bordeaux.
Country born: France
Education: University of Bordeaux
Years in the wine industry: 30+ years
St. Supéry Estate Vineyards & Winery is distributed in the following markets. Please contact the winery directly for the most up-to-date distribution information and to explore commercial opportunities.
St. Supéry Estate Vineyards & Winery Contact: Nayeli Acevedo
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