2013 Screaming Eagle, Second Flight, Oakville, Napa Valley, California, USA

2013 Screaming Eagle, Second Flight, Oakville, Napa Valley, California, USA

Product: 20138010582
 
2013 Screaming Eagle, Second Flight, Oakville, Napa Valley, California, USA

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Available by the case In Bond. Pricing excludes duty and VAT, which must be paid separately before delivery. Storage charges apply.
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Description

The 2013 Second Flight is 65% Merlot, 22% Cabernet Franc and the rest Cabernet Sauvignon. This wine displays the energy, vibrancy and tension of 2013, and is not nearly as dramatic and flamboyant, nor as sexy as the 2012, but the wine is outstanding, very Bordeaux-like and well-made, with loads of red and black currant fruit, some licorice and underbrush as well as loamy soil notes. It should drink well for 10-15 years.
Robert M. Parker, Jr. - The Wine Advocate, 30th Oct 2015

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Critics reviews

Antonio Galloni, Vinous95/100
The 2013 Second Flight is dark, powerful and incisive, with layers of graphite-infused minerality that are pushed forward. This is perhaps the most intense, brooding Second Flight I have tasted so far. Unctuous and deep to the core, the 2013 possesses magnificent concentration to match its spherical texture. Lavender, rose petal, mint and a host of savory notes wrap around the deep, somber finish. What a gorgeous wine the 2013 is shaping up to be. This is a total knock-out from the team at Screaming Eagle.

Drink 2018 - 2033

Antonio Galloni, vinous.com (Oct 2015) Read more
Wine Advocate96+/100
Very deep garnet-purple colored, the 2013 Second Flight simply sings of spiced blueberries, black forest cake and preserved plums with suggestions of star anise, bakers chocolate, fertile loam and dried Provence herbs with a hint of lavender. Big, concentrated, full-bodied and packed to the gills with black fruits, exotic spice and floral layers, it has a firm frame of grainy tannins and just enough freshness, finishing with epic length and loads of layers. Still very taut, it needs at least another 2-3 years in bottle. Interestingly, this full-on hedonistic vintage has one of the largest Merlot contributions ever for this wine: 65% Merlot with 13% Cabernet Sauvignon and 22% Cabernet Franc.
Lisa Perrotti-Brown - 27/04/2018 Read more
James Suckling97/100
Very bright and aromatic with dark purple fruits on the nose. Mint, floral and vine bark. Spearmint. Full body, very firm tannins, wonderful savoriness. Flavorful finish. A fabulous mouthfeel. Very, very long. Mostly merlot with cabernet sauvignon and cabernet franc. Drink or hold. 710 cases made.

James Suckling, jamessuckling.com (Jan 2016) Read more
Decanter94/100
A blend containing more Merlot and Cabernet Franc, Screaming Eagle's second wine is more floral and perfumed, revealing a fragrant bouquet of bright raspberry, rose petal, tobacco and spearmint. Supple and savoury, this wine appeals for its aromatic amplitude and classical profile.

Drink 2017 - 2027

William Kelley, Decanter.com (May 2016) Read more

About this WINE

Screaming Eagle

Screaming Eagle

Screaming Eagle is one of the original Californian "cult wines". Proprietor Jean Philips never dreamt that her wine would be so sought after, when in 1992, after years of selling grapes to Napa Valley wineries, she decided to find out if her home-made wine, created in a plastic trash can, was any good. She took a sample down to Robert Mondavi where they thought enough of her dark, rich, cassis-flavoured Cabernet to encourage her to bottle it, though they snickered at her proposed name. The rest is history.

Screaming Eagle's 100% Cabernet Sauvignon vineyard is ideally situated. The soil is virtually a rock pile on a gentle, west-facing slope east of the Napa River. Drainage and exposure are excellent. The property is at a point in the valley where the weather is hot enough during the day to ripen Cabernet to its optimum, yet the grapes are cooled by the afternoon breezes that blow north from San Pablo Bay.

Only 500 cases a year of Screaming Eagle are produced under the direction of winemaker Heidi Peterson Barret. The resulting wines are brimming with deep, plush layers of flavour, echoing currant, cassis, blackberries and black cherry. The tannins are soft, round and polished, yet firm enough to give every indication that Screaming Eagle wines will age beautifully for 10 to 20 years.

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Napa Valley

Napa Valley

North Coast's Napa Valley is California's most famous viticultural area (AVA), claiming some of the most expensive agricultural land in the world and producing wines of ‘cult’ status.

Its 16,000 ha of vines lie over a strip (40 miles long-5 miles wide) of diverse soils (clay, gravely, volcanic), with its northernmost end on the side of Mountain Helena and its foot in San Francisco Bay. The valley is framed by two mountains ranges Vaca (to the north) and Mayacamas (to the south), yet the main climatic influence is the cool wind and fog that is sucked in from San Pablo Bay during the afternoon, allowing grapes to ripen slowly and evenly. 

The area enjoys a variety of unique microclimates, as temperatures can vary dramatically as much as 15 degrees, from the north to the south end of the valley. These differences have led to the creation of several sub-AVAs (14 in total) including:

Atlas Peak, Chiles Valley District, Diamond Mountain District, Howell Mountain, Los Carneros, Mt. Veeder, Oakville, Rutherford, St. Helena, Spring Mountain District, Stags Leap District, Yountville, Wild Horse Valley and Oak Knoll District. The Calistoga AVA is still pending approval.

Both the “Napa Valley” designation and the sub-AVA name must appear on the wine label simultaneously, with the exception of wines from the Carneros AVA, which is shared between the Napa Valley and the Sonoma County.

Cabernet Sauvignon is the undisputed king of Napa grapes, occupying over 45% of the vineyard acreage, followed by (predominantly) Chardonnay, Sauvignon Blanc, Chenin Blanc, Riesling, Zinfandel, Merlot, Cab. Franc and to a lesser extent Petite Sirah, Sangiovese, Barbera, Dolcetto.

Recommended Producers
Frog's Leap, Dominus, David Ramey, Viader, Stag's Leap Cellars, Paras Vineyards, Heitz.

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Cabernet Sauvignon Blend

Cabernet Sauvignon Blend

Cabernet Sauvignon lends itself particularly well in blends with Merlot. This is actually the archetypal Bordeaux blend, though in different proportions in the sub-regions and sometimes topped up with Cabernet Franc, Malbec, and Petit Verdot.

In the Médoc and Graves the percentage of Cabernet Sauvignon in the blend can range from 95% (Mouton-Rothschild) to as low as 40%. It is particularly suited to the dry, warm, free- draining, gravel-rich soils and is responsible for the redolent cassis characteristics as well as the depth of colour, tannic structure and pronounced acidity of Médoc wines. However 100% Cabernet Sauvignon wines can be slightly hollow-tasting in the middle palate and Merlot with its generous, fleshy fruit flavours acts as a perfect foil by filling in this cavity.

In St-Emilion and Pomerol, the blends are Merlot dominated as Cabernet Sauvignon can struggle to ripen there - when it is included, it adds structure and body to the wine. Sassicaia is the most famous Bordeaux blend in Italy and has spawned many imitations, whereby the blend is now firmly established in the New World and particularly in California and  Australia.

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