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Marietta Cellars

Armé Cabernet Sauvignon 2021

North Coast, California

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Named after Armé, the husband of Marietta and great-great uncle of Owner/Winemaker Scot Bilbro, this Cabernet Sauvignon conveys a taut freshness and aromatic purity. Stylistically balanced between modern California and Old World, this wine is dense with fresh, dark fruit and tempered with a savory, earthy character. The dry fly on the label is a reference to Chris Bilbro’s long family history of fishing with his great uncle Armé along the waterways that now adjoin the three estate vineyards.

Vineyard

The fruit for this wine comes from the Angeli Estate vineyard in Alexander Valley and the McDowell Valley estate. The Cabernet on the Angeli Estate rests on rocky hillside terraces. Foggy mornings along the Russian River burn off to hot afternoons followed by chilly nights. Coupled with deep gravel swales and rocky hills, this vineyard offers the perfect balance between warm days and cool nights. The McDowell Valley estate, situated in a valley surrounded by mountains, benefits from the cold sink that ensures cool nights and preserves acidity and freshness.

Winemaking

16 months of aging in neutral barrels. 84% Cabernet Sauvignon is blended with 10% Merlot, 4% Malbec, and 2% Petit Verdot.

Vintage

2021’s extremely cold and dry winter coupled with a windy spring made for a lighter yielding crop and small berries. These tiny clusters and berries went through the mild growing season with accelerated ripeness and made for a darker more intense wine. Harvest happened a week early across all varietals. Flavors were riper, denser, and showcased more red fruit then other vintages. This was a stellar growing season and the resultant wines are fresh and bright now but are built to age gracefully.

Tasting Note

“Like an early morning horse ride through chaparral, this Cabernet kicks up waves of floral, mint, and dusty sage on the nose. Elevated, clear, and refreshing, this wine startles and intrigues. Across the palate a broad flood of grippy tannins is eroded by a core of velvet. Fresh and rounded, big yet steely, with hints of Kalamata olive under the primary note of blueberry, this wine has incredible focus with settled length. Delicious now, this will show added layers and depth over the next 5-15 years.” – Scot Bilbro, Winemaker

Food Pairing

The Armé Cabernet Sauvignon pairs beautifully with herbed roasts, asparagus, garlicky beans, and all manner of savory foods.

Color

Red

Appellation

North Coast, California

Farming

The Armé Cabernet Sauvignon is made from 100% estate fruit, all of which is organically farmed

Alcohol

14.6%

Suggested Retail Price

$33

Reviews

93

"Black cherries with nuances of lavender"

Wine Advocate - October 23, 2023 “The 2021 Armé Cabernet Sauvignon is blended with 10% Merlot and 2% Petit Verdot. It has pretty tones of blueberries and black cherries with nuances of lavender, thyme and underbrush. The palate is medium-bodied, chalky and refreshing, with surprising depth of crunchy fruit and floral sparks across the long, juicy finish.” -E.B. 10/23

Trade Materials

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Mareitta Cellars Armé Cabernet Sauvignon Bottle Shot

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Named after cellarmaster Román Cisneros who has worked at Marietta for over 32 years, this Estate Zinfandel is from the Angeli estate vineyard in Alexander Valley and the McDowell Valley estate vineyard. One of the grape varieties that Marietta is famous for, this wine captures the bright, juicy character of Zinfandel, and hearkens to an era before dark, thick and oaky styles of Zinfandel took hold.

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