Robert Parker says "one of my long held beliefs is that in order to make truly world-class wine, one has had to have tasted a lot of it and know how those wines were made. Tor Kenward is, at the very minimum, a longtime connoisseur who has had exposure to great wines from all over the world. That, plus his long career at Beringer, has put him in a position to know some of the better vineyard sources in Northern California. When combined with a thorough understanding of the world's finest wines, he is in a terrific position to translate that into top products, which he in fact has done".

Tor Kenward spent 27 years as a senior executive with Beringer Vineyards working in winemaking and marketing, helping to build a wine company known to collectors worldwide for its outstanding Reserve and single vineyard Cabernet Sauvignons. He retired in 2001, and along with his wife Susan, started TOR Kenward Family Wines, a small wine company based on single vineyard Cabernet Sauvignons and Chardonnays.

2011 Vintage, Napa Cabernet Sauvignon

Quoted from the Wine Spectator...
“Here’s one word Napa growers never want to hear in the same sentence with Napa Valley Cabernet: botrytis. Noble rot works magic with dessert wines, but not with the valley’s premiere red wine. While no one in Napa made Cabernet with botrytis-affected grapes, the fact that it spread through vineyards, forcing grapes to be left on the ground, shows how hard 2011 was.

Cabernet thrives in the warm, dry weather that is the Napa norm but was AWOL in 2011. There simply wasn't enough heat to turn the tables on a year that tested winegrowers at just about every turn, from a cold, wet spring, a late fruit set, a mild summer and a harvest that dragged on into November, bedeviled by rain and rot. “It was a horrible year for Napa Cabernet,” said Chuck Wagner of Caymus Vineyards.

The cool spring weather hampered fruit set, when flowers turn to berries, in most vineyards reducing the crop by about half compared to normal, Wagner said. “Yields ranged from 0.5 to 3.5 tons per acre," he said. Yet "oddly the low-yielding vines did not ripen well either.”

Rain in October caused further delays and triggered the onset of botrytis in many vineyards. “The weather was like Europe,” said Wagner, so much so that he flew in a French consultant for advice on how best to manage the crop. “To me the quality of fruit ranged widely—one vineyard fine, the next a failure.”

“If you start late, you finish late,” said Thomas Brown, co-owner of Rivers-Marie and winemaker for a dozen Napa wineries, including Schrader. “No matter how nice the summer was, there was only so much catching up we could do. With the smallest Cabernet crop most of us had ever seen, we thought ripening would speed along but again that was not the case.”

Vineyard managers did what they could to save the crop, removing leaves to let more sun in and thinning bunches where possible. But the hot weather that usually comes at harvest didn’t arrive. In its place came botrytis in many vineyards. “I admit I'd never seen botrytis in Cabernet and the idea of losing up to half of what was already a really small crop was not very appealing,” said Brown.

Philippe Melka, who oversees winemaking at more than a dozen Napa wineries, says the late, cool 2011 harvest reminded him of a rainy year back home—in Bordeaux. In 20 years in Napa, he’s never seen botrytis affect Cabernet.

Earlier-ripening grapes such as Sauvignon Blanc, Merlot and Cabernet Franc are showing great character and style, Melka said. The Cabernet quality could be more inconsistent, he said. “I also think that a great selection of Cabernet lots blended with some amazing Merlot and Cabernet Franc could create some very successful wines," he said. "Either way it will clearly be one of the lowest alcohol years in a long time.”

Because botrytis-affected grapes were dumped, it won't be rot that holds Cabernet back. It will be lack of ripeness. "I think the lack of ripeness, and not so much the degree of botrytis or other fungal organisms, will be the dominate issue in 2011," said Chris Pedemonte of Colinas Farming Co, a vineyard management company.” —James Laube

While no one is calling it a great vintage, many believe great wines were made, just not enough of them. “I think there will be some exceptional wines, but they won’t be because of luck,” said Tor Kenward of Kenward Family Vineyards. “They will reflect experienced growers and winemakers who took adversity and turned it to their advantage. I expect a mixed bag.” Critiques rated Tor’s Cabs among some of the top wines produced from Napa for 2011.

Below are notes from Tor on each of the wines in our offer:

THE WINES

TOR Cabernet Sauvignon
Napa Valley, 2011
Blend: 100% Cabernet Sauvignon
Production: 300 cases 750ml
Release Date: January 2014
89-91 Points, Robert Parker

Vineyards
70% Mast (Yountville). Mast is our secret weapon when it is used as a blender. There is all the red berry character, but there are also hints of Moroccan spice that dance around the corners of the wine, adding dimension and other layers of flavor. Fun stuff. 22% Cimarossa (Howell Mtn.). Always adds to the spine of our Napa Valley Cabernet, giving it tension and that graphite, dark fruits luster. 8% Beckstoffer To Kalon (Oakville). This vineyard contributes that plush middle and dollop of wild blackberries element to the wine. Of course, it also adds significantly to the long lasting finish.

Winemaking
The 2011 Napa Cabernet Sauvignon was fermented as individual wines and then blended back after many blending trials. The Mast Cabernet base wine was left on its skins for a little over 18 days and given between 2-3 pump-overs a day and actually went to barrel dry which for us is very unusual. The Mast Cabernet was put down to about 70% new wood that was a mix of Taransaud, Sylvain and Ermitage. The goal on this wine is not to make the biggest, most massive wine of the vintage, but is instead to blend a complete and complex wine that shows both the vintage and the best qualities of each vineyard that went into it. In 2011, that was absolutely achieved.

Winemaker’s Tasting Notes
The 2011 Napa Cabernet Sauvignon shows a mix of black fruits (To Kalon and Cimarossa), with the red fruits (red raspberries and cherries) coming from the inclusion of the Mast Cabernet. This is very silky and seamless without any real obvious tannin and is a wonderfully complete and complex Cabernet that can been joyed perhaps a little sooner than the designate Cabernets from 2011, but should also age wonderfully for at least another 7-10 years, if not longer.

TOR Cabernet Sauvignon
Tierra Roja Vineyard, 2011
Blend: 100% Cabernet Sauvignon
Production: 150 cases
Release Date: January 2014
93 Points, Robert Parker

Vineyards
Drive the Oakville Cross Road to the Silverado Trail then look directly forward and up and you see Tierra Roja, a small four acre jewel of a hillside vineyard. Great neighbors – Backus, Screaming Eagle, Maya and Rudd. The vineyard is dotted with big rocks, and the soil is definitely Roja (very red). You might expect the wines to be massive, but they are very perfumed, dark, and complex - more like Screaming Eagle than neighbor Dalla Valle.

Winemaking
The 2011 Tierra Roja Cabernet was again a wonderful wine to ferment. This vineyard seems to give off more of the finished wine smells more than any other while it is fermenting. Out of the tank you can actually smell the blackberry and meat. This was fermented for about 17 days on its skins and then put down to almost 100% Darnajou wood - along with a small amount of Taransaud and Sylvain. We gave the Tierra Roja more pump-overs for longer than our other Oakville Cabernet at To Kalon. This received at least two pump-overs, and on occasion three each day. This is a beautiful wine.

Winemaker’s Tasting Notes
I always love Tierra Roja. There is a very distinct, very bright fruit profile to this wine. It shows mostly black fruits with black cherries and blackberries, but the red soils that this vineyard sit on give it an additional bit of lift and energy. As much as I enjoy this wine now, I think that its best days are ahead of it. The very low yields contributed to a build meant to last a long time. If you are a fan of the Oakville Cabernets made from this area in the early 1990’s like I am, you will love this wine.

TOR Red Wine
Beckstoffer To Kalon Vineyard, 2011
Blend: 72% Cabernet Sauvignon,
28% Cabernet Franc (100% Beckstoffer To Kalon)
Production: 240 cases 750ml | 48 cases 1.5L
Release Date: January 2014

Vineyards
Beckstoffer To Kalon continues to receive worldwide accolades for its wines, particularly in the last decade. The vineyard is on a gentle slope on the western foothills of the Oakville appellation. Soils are Bale loam/Bale clay loam, and are impeccably farmed by Andy Beckstoffer’s team. There are only a few rows of Cabernet Franc - which we covet. This wine is 28% Cabernet Franc and 72% Cabernet Sauvignon, Clone 337 and Clone 6.

Winemaking
The 2011 To Kalon Cabernet (along with the other 2011 Cabernets) was possibly one of the easiest fermentations I have seen in years. While we had very little fruit, what we did get in was very healthy and fermented in tank for twelve days and finished in barrel a little more than two weeks later. This was given no more than two pump-overs a day and toward the end of its fermentation was only given a single one each day. Fermented dry, the wine was moved to its traditional mix of Darnajou and Taransaud wood - where normally our Cabernets will get three to four rackings, this received only two until bottling.

Winemaker’s Tasting Notes
This is truly unlike any To Kalon wine that we have ever made before because of the addition of the Cabernet Franc. This shows a tremendous bit of tobacco, earth and spice (think a mix of Graves/Pessac in Bordeaux and Oakville Cabernet). This is a little bit less forward and giving right away. It will need some additional air time to show all that it has. With time, this may very well end up being one of (if not the) favorite To Kalon wines for me to drink. This may also be the longest lived wine we have made from this vineyard.

In addition, we are offering two of Tor’s Rhone Varietals from the outstanding 2012 Vintage: 

TOR ROCK Grenache
Cuvée Cooper, 2012
Blend: 98% Grenache, Terra Bella Vineyard; 2% Syrah
Production: 225 cases
Release Date: July 2014

Vineyards
The Terra Bella Vineyard, located in western Paso Robles, is within sight of the Pacific Ocean, which creates a more moderate climate than found with vineyards further inland. This climate is ideal for red Rhone varietals like Grenache and Syrah, and producing wines with very low pH, good acidity and excellent sugars. The result is rich wines with great varietal characteristics, depth, and balance. The soils are riddled with limestone which restricts growth, sets a smaller crop, and makes for some of the most uniquely distinctive Grenache wines in the world, certainly in California.

Winemaking
The 2012 Cuvée Cooper continues to show us just why we love Grenache so much. This vintage was completely destemmed and fermented with its own wild yeast in a single open top fermenter using a combination of punch downs and pump overs. This is a Grenache for a Grenache purist, not someone who loves Grenache that tastes like Syrah. Once again we bottled this unfined and unfiltered.

Winemaker’s Tasting Notes
The nose on the 2012 Cooper is all red fruits and earth and then backed up by some light spice and mint. On the palate this is medium weight with more red fruits, roasted meats, white pepper and a touch of licorice. Like the 2011 that came before it - this can be paired with any pasta, meat dishes, or would go wonderfully with cheeses.

TOR ROCK Syrah
Hommage Allan, 2012
Blend: 100% Syrah
Production: 275 cases
Release Date: July 2014

Vineyards
We are very impressed with this vineyard site. Our Syrah block is a steep climb up the Conn Valley foothills between St. Helena and Lake Hennessey. The orientation of the vines climbing the hill offers good sun exposure, and the soils are restrictive clay and rock. Syrah likes it here, especially when farmed by Jim Barbour, who knows that Syrah clusters and canopy need thinning to bring the fruit to full maturity. Walking the vineyard at harvest, I felt the crop was in balance and the clusters smaller than I see in most California Syrah sites. You will be seeing many more Syrah’s from La Herradura Vineyard.

Winemaking
The 2012 Hommage Allan is the biggest, baddest Syrah for TOR since the 2006 Hudson Vineyard Syrah. This was fermented, destemmed and in an open top tank using mostly pump overs. We left the wine on its skins for an additional 12 days past dry since the wine continued to gain additional richness and nuances as the skins gave up more and more intensity. Like all our wines, this went to bottle unfined and unfiltered.

Winemaker’s Tasting Notes
The nose on this 2012 Allan just explodes with sage, grilled meat, black pepper and sweet tobacco. On the palate this wine is very rich and full bodied. This shows mostly black fruit, dried herbs and BBQ spices. The finish on this sails on forever and only starts to taper off after 40 seconds. This is a Syrah to take and enjoy with your best friends or pair with your favorite meal. While this is great now it should slowly age and evolve into an even more amazing wine over the next 5 years.

THE OFFER:
(10% Off any mixed case)

2011 Cabernet Sauvignon, Napa Valley $75

2011 Cabernet Sauvignon, Tierra Roja $150

2011 Red Wine, Beckstoffer To Kalon Vineyard $160

2012 Tor Rock Grenache, Cuvee Cooper $44

2012 Tor Rock Syrah $44

ORDERING

For all questions and orders, contact Jeff McCarthy at 707 569 2906 or [email protected]. Let us know if you would like your wine shipped or placed in your wine locker. Sales tax and appropriate shipping will be added to all orders. Allow 2-3 weeks for account processing and shipping. During extreme weather, wine orders may be held until it is safe to ship.

GIFT OF WINE 2014

Wine is the perfect gift for so many occasions and at all times of the year; especially during the holidays! If you are planning early, have a look at our newly released GIFT OF WINE ORDER FORM. There are some fun packages we have put together that you and your friends will love! Feel free to fill out the attached form or give me a call and we'll organize the whole gift - the wine, the greeting card, and the shipping!