Lambert Bridge Winery

Sonoma County

98% Cabernet Sauvignon
1% Merlot
1% Petit Verdot 

Perfectly cellared wines released in their prime – an added benefit of being a Liquid Asset club member!

Our new Library program was born in 2008 when our Cabernet Sauvignon crop came in 39% under plan due to a record cold spring. We always hold back a small quantity of our red wines in the library for our winemakers’ education programs and a few special events. After the short crop of 2008, Lambert Bridge made the conscious decision to hold back and cellar additional 2005, 2006 and 2007 Cabernet Sauvignon for a new library release program. These library wines would be made available to our Liquid Asset club members only after we, the winemakers, decided that they were ready to be re-released.

Timing is everything. Last November, I came in one Monday morning just raving about how delicious the 2005 Cabernet tasted with our Saturday night dinner when paired with grilled tenderloin of beef. Based on such high praise, Jen and I poured it at our Club Holiday party and our wine club members who attended were wowed by the wine’s gracefully aged character and structure.

The original wine notes described the 2005 Limited Selection Cabernet as “gorgeous” and it has only gotten better with age. The wine possesses beautifully developed aromatics of blackberries, currants and cassis, all classic characteristics of Cabernet Sauvignon. Aging the Cabernet for the past seven years has concentrated the flavors and softened the structure of the wine making it rich with chocolate notes and a soft velvety texture.

We are very excited to share this wine with you. Find a few good friends, pull out the cork and build some special memories around a bottle of 2005 Limited Selection Cabernet Sauvignon.

Jill Davis Jennifer Higgins

Our 2005 Cabernet Sauvignon is gorgeous! It is a dark ruby on its way to a deep inky color. It has a beautifully rich nose brimming with ripe blackberry, currant, cassis and sweet toasty oak. A rich and balanced mouth feel, this wine is ample, round, forward and very complex. Twenty months of bottle aging has allowed this Cabernet Sauvignon to fully develop its flavors of ripe black fruit, lilac, violet, nutmeg, clove, and sweet anise. Aging in 100% French oak adds rich tannin that rounds out the palate. It is delicious today and will hold for many years of enjoyment.

The 2005 vintage was a wonderful one! It had consistent weather that provided our Cabernet Sauvignon fruit with a deep and full maturity. It has great tannin and acid structure. A true treasure and a must in your cellar!

We recommend serving the 2005 Cabernet Sauvignon with classic oven roasted fillet of beef, wild mushroom bruschetta and pan seared duck breast with cherry sauce.

Several Suggested Recipes

Sonoma County

100% Cabernet Sauvignon 

In describing the Limited Selection Cabernet Sauvignon it is important that we note the process…for it truly is a discriminating and focused selection which brings us the finest that each vintage has to offer. This process starts in the vineyard—the finest vineyard sites in Sonoma County, each a hillside site with perfect soils for growing Cabernet…and each a fully mature and seasoned vineyard. For this 100% Cabernet Sauvignon wine, Jill and team then work through each of the individual lots of wine, tasting and evaluating before settling on the precise combination that will become the final assembly.

Each of these lots is aged in separate barrels, thus contributing yet another dimension of quality to the process. A significant contribution to the nature of this wine is from the Marcel Cadet barrels used in the ageing…these are barrels formed from French oak of the highest caliber that has been air dried for 36 months. These barrels respect the luscious fruit and finish it with sweet, focused oak. Precise maceration gives us depth of color, while providing refined tannin structure. This wine is well proportioned with a seamless body and balanced juicy fruit. Displaying a deep, black garnet hue, the nose opens with aromas of chocolate covered cherries, black currants and dried violets while the palate evolves with lengthy and seductive flavors that include wisps of tobacco, red and black currants, cocoa and more cherry.

With plenty of substance and depth this wine tastes great now but will cellar for years to come. We recommend serving our Limited Selection Cabernet with grilled spring lamb chops with a Cabernet reduction sauce, pan seared filet mignon with wild mushroom sauce or pancetta wrapped pork tenderloin.

Several Suggested Recipes

Sonoma County

89% Cabernet Sauvignon
 6% Malbec
 5% Merlot

Going, Going, Gone!

With pitchers and catchers reporting for duty already and opening day just around the corner, we couldn’t help but lead off with a famous baseball homerun call. We also think we have hit one out of the ball park with our 2008 Limited Selection Cabernet Sauvignon.

All 189 cases of this very small vintage are allocated to our wine club members, so like a great home run call, this vintage will be “gone” completely upon release. After a Spring filled with frosty mornings left us with only 61% of our normal Cabernet crop, the remaining clusters were very carefully tended and coaxed to perfect maturity.

With an intense red color spreading to hues of blue at the edges of the glass, this wine is densely packed with dark fruits including black cherry and ripe, spicy plum. Traces of clove and cedar result from our winemakers’ careful selection of the best barrels. It has a powerful, yet supple finish that will leave you wanting more.

Since there will only be a few bottles of this rare vintage to enjoy, we recommend a special occasion with family and friends and pairing it with a previous vintage of Limited Selection Cabernet Sauvignon for comparison. Open both bottles together, share a few laughs, and pair them with one of our all-time family favorites – a perfectly grilled 3” thick New York strip steak.

Several Suggested Recipes