Spottswoode – 1
Thursday, January 27th, 2005Spottswoode is one of those small, lovely wineries where limited, quality production is the key to success. Back in the 1970’s Mary Novak and her husband Jack purchased the estate and began a herculean effort to replant the vineyards. After the sudden death of her husband, Mary made an important decision — to continue through adversity in the rebuilding of the winery. Many widows in her place might have simply decided to give up a dream like that, but she perservered and ultimately made Spottswoode a highly sought-after wine.
On the day of my visit, I greatly admired the old building that awaits you at the entrance. It is these old, stone edifices that are sprinkled throughout the Napa valley which intrigue me the most. 
Organic farming is the other aspect about Spottswoode which I am curious about and hope to explore more fully. Shanyn MacDaera met us upon our arrival and immediately served us the 2003 Spottswoode Sauvignon Blanc. This is not an estate-grown wine, but comes from both the Carneros and Calistoga regions, being 18% Semillion and 82% Sauvignon Blanc. On the nose, I detected that desirable cat-piss aroma along with freshly-cut green grass. There was also a hint of marshamllow. In the mouth, the floral characters opened up and the thick fruit on the nose gave way to an oppulent mouth feel which surprised me for a SauvBlanc. Shanyn advised us that these vineyards are ‘dry farmed’ which means they are not regularly irrigated.
After walking through the production facilities, we ended up in that historical building where their barrels are kept. It was in here that we tasted the 2001 Spottswoode Cabernet Sauvignon. This wine is 95% Cabernet Sauvignon and 5% Cabernet Franc. Only 4,000 cases were made and because of the quality of the wine and the reputation, it was already sold out. There is a huge amount brambleberry on the nose and a hint of herbal and floral qualities. In the mouth, a full roundness of blueberry gives off to those floral qualities. It is huge and warm and goes on forever. All I could do was ask to be put on the mailing list, in hopes of acquiring a bottle or two in the future.
Spottswoode ~ 1902 Madrona Avenue ~ St. Helena, CA 94574 ~ 707-963-0134
