Somm David T

Independent Sommelier/Wine Educator

9.7

Of the Napa wines I tasted over 4 days on this trip, the 16 Sinegal Reserve & the 13 Seavey Cabernet were my favorites. Both great wines but, stylistically very different. The Seavy big and bold and the Sinegal pure beauty & elegance.

The nose reveals very dark currants. Dark & milk chocolate. Blackberries, creamy black raspberries, black plum & plum, mocha powder, core of anise, beautiful dark spice, soft volcanic soils, some dry brush and lavender, violets and fresh dark red florals.

The body is full. The tannins are really meaty but, exceptionally soft, fine and meaty. Lots of dark spice with plenty of heat. The mouthfeel is gorgeously sexy with feminine elegance. Dark & milk chocolate. Blackberries, creamy black raspberries, black plum & plum, mocha powder, core of anise, beautiful dark spice, big sweet tarry notes, soft volcanic soils, some dry brush, lavender, violets and fresh dark red florals. The acidity is perfect. The finish is well balanced sexy and gorgeous. The structure, tension say this needs to cellar eight to ten years.

Photos of; tasting cellar area, modern stainless tanks, outside terrace tasting and or dining area and their grounds and lake.

Producer history and notes...Sinegal Estate was founded in 2013 with wines made from their 30 acre Inglewood estate in St Helena (not to be confused with the Inglenook Estate in Rutherford). This is not a new property, it was part of an original land grant and its more modern day history dates back to 1879 when owner Alton Williams purchased the property and planted the first vines in 1881.

The property has changed owners a number of times over the decades. At one point the Jaegers’ owned the estate, Bill Jaeger and his wife Lila lived here. These Napa Valley pioneers were in part responsible for helping establish Freemark Abbey and Rutherford Hill. Lila was also a gardener and established beautiful gardens on the property.

Owners, David (father)and James (son) Sinegal purchased the property in 2013. James was the co-founder of Costco and once CEO. David worked at Costco for 21 years.

After the purchase, David divided each of their vineyards into smaller blocks, picking selectively (30 times in 2013) rather than all at once, and adding technology to the vineyards so they have up to the date reports on a number of data points including temperatures, soil moisture and various barometric pressures. If they want to selectively water, say vine #67 in row number three, they can do so with their irrigation system. Extremely efficient!

Nine acres of vines are planted to various red varietals including; Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, Malbec and Petit Verdot. They have some of the older Cabernet Franc vines in the valley that are 30+ years old.

The soils here are diverse and can vary even within small geographic ranges on the property. Some of their vineyards are planted on the valley floor – while their upper vineyards are hillside, on the edges of the Mayacamas Mountains.

Their landscape above the property is interesting and part of the Mayacamas Mountains. Visually, it appears drier than other parts of this mountain range and the vegetation reflects that with grey pine and more open natural vegetation rather than the thicker wooded vegetation more commonly associated with parts of Spring and Diamond Mountains to the north.

After purchasing the property, David created planned and laid out his vision to create a world-class boutique wine making operation. Many wineries in the Napa Valley can take years before they come to fruition, not so here. After only about 10 months, the existing winery was remodeled. 6,500 feet of caves were expanded and drilled into the hillside behind the winery and a new hospitality center was built. The hospitality center ties in very well with the winery. From the small tasting room, large doors open revealing the tanks.

A vegetable garden slightly under an acre grows just south of the winery building. Vegetables from this garden are sold to nearby restaurants.

A skeleton key appears on the labels of their wine and is prominently displayed on the outside of their winery building. This has historical significance. The original key opens the front door to the historic home on site and is displayed in the tasting room. With respect to the history of this property, this one key has already become iconic to the brand.

You only need to look inside of the winery to see that their wine making team is focused on quality. Each of the small lot tanks have built in pumps which can be controlled and programmed to do pump-overs anytime of the day or night. In addition, these tanks have multiple points at which the temperature can be controlled. These tanks do not necessarily handle all their fermentation’s. They also ferment small lots in puncheons and barrels as needed. Control across the board is the key here and it is the control of the details in wine making that is is so integral from when the fruit first arrives through to when it is bottled.

2013 was their inaugural release. The focus is currently on two primary varietals, Sauvignon Blanc and Cabernet Sauvignon. The 2013 Sauvignon Blanc were sourced from the estate but, then it was determined it was growing in an area better suited for red varietals so it was torn up and new plantings were made in the back of the property. While not far from these original plantings, their new home for their Sauvignon Blanc features different soils and is growing in a cooler part of the property.


The wine making team has been experimenting with the style of this varietal since 2013 with subsequent vintages seeing more oak. Especially, using the slightly longer cigar shaped barrels , which have extra surface area for maximizing complexities including textural feel imparted from aging the wine on the lees in these particular barrels. Maceration on the red wines is often 8-10 days and sometimes up to 20 days.

Most of their sales are direct to visitors or through their mailing list. However, they do have some distribution outside California in Florida, New York and Washington. Primarily to restaurants. — 8 years ago

Marc L.

9.0

It's got character. Thicker and cloudier in appearance and taste than what you'd expect from a wheat. A hint of abbey ale flavoring. Like a fun hybrid. In Pittsburgh. — 10 years ago

Matt Austin

Owner/Winemaker, Grosgrain Vineyards, Walla Walla, WA

9.0

Interesting new offering from the Lost Abbey. From the nose I was expecting a sour (label also mentions wild yeast), but the palate is more standard strong ale (12.5% alc). Lots of spice and malt. The rum barrel aging is very evident. Pretty good, but hard to reconcile the nose with the palate. — 11 years ago

Harry R. Knabe

9.0

Christening the new home with Downton Abbey and "Awkward". — 11 years ago

with Bill, Dan and 1 other

Nick Piccone

9.5

Everyone thought I was drinking wine at the pregame — 8 years ago

Al Shikoh

9.0

* appearance: moderate ruby color with thin orange rim
* aromas: plum, black cherry, milk chocolate>green tobacco leaf, coconut
* palate: lush, round, dark fruit
* structure: medium tannin, medium acid, 14.5% alcohol
* finish: medium length
* winemaking: 86% Merlot sourced from both mountain sites and valley floor blended with other Bordeaux varieties including Cabernet Sauvignon, Petit Verdot, Cabernet Franc, and Malbec aged 14 months in 21% new American and French oak
* pairing: homemade smoked beef brisket
* price: $35 — 9 years ago

with Drew and Kelly

Carl Fischer

9.4

Everything I love in a new world Pinot. Bright cherries and strawberries, herbal notes of tea, light bodied, soft tannins, great acidity. All Anthill Farms' pinots are consistently good and crowd pleasers. When people say they don't like pinots I usually turn to this or El Molino to convince them otherwise. — 9 years ago

.:;2):’kicndnebxhjd

9.0

Pretty lively. You've gotta love the sense of place with lots of cinnamon, chocolate powder, red and black pepper, currant, and blackberry rolling around in your mouth. There is significant minerality going on (volcanic rock's my bet) and it's balanced by new world juiciness. My only knock on it is faint pyrazines would have made this wild but I'm just speaking of personal hopes. Had this with Mediterranean food.. Zero regrets!! — 9 years ago

Rebecca Fletcher

9.4

Apricot and honey. M+ acid and body. Balanced. Fresh and lively. Will be fantastic with blue cheese or any dessert. — 10 years ago

Brett Fromme

9.0

A great spiced ale from OMMEGANG brewery in Cooperstown NY, home of the baseball Hall of Fame. Recommend both! Great complexity and balance! 8.2% abv. — 10 years ago

Matt Austin

Owner/Winemaker, Grosgrain Vineyards, Walla Walla, WA

9.2

This one threw me for a loop. Not typical Napa at all. Very Loire Cab Franc. Haven't had any Freemarks this recent, but if this is a new more restrained style (and they've already managed to stay rather old-school) I'm totally on board. — 11 years ago

Giovanna Berardi

8.9

Very much enjoyed this with family on New Year’s Day! — 8 years ago

E & K G

9.1

A new favorite! Rich, just a touch of sweetness on the finish. #wheninhawaii #drinkhawaiian — 9 years ago

John Angell

9.5

An excellent triple. Haven't paired it with any food, unfortunately, but a very pleasant, drinkable Belgian. Definitely a fruity finish, reminds me of New Belgium Triple but not quite the coriander finish. I'll look for it at my local beer stores, although I would guess it's regional. — 9 years ago

Stuart Rasley

9.2

Belgians are the new American IPA. Or some such.... Merry Christmas Eve! — 9 years ago

with Lisa

Frederick Kuehn

9.5

Candied blood oranges and tangerines mingle supported by vibrant acidity and the complex honeyed aromas of botrytis. An absolute pleasure and treat. — 9 years ago

Jonas Johansson

9.2

Last of a long great nights of ales. This one is my fave from NBB — 10 years ago

Kelly Driscoll

9.2

Really tasty. Can definitely taste the caramel and dark fruits with a slight nuttiness. — 10 years ago

Juan Falcon

9.5

Too complex for my aprentice palate but theres definitevely something extremely good about it. Strong bitter sweet toasted the more you have it the more you learn to like it. Still Im not completely sold so no 10 score ...yet. — 11 years ago

Gab Floramica

9.4

Toffee orange spice. Pleasing bitter zip. Delicate finish. — 12 years ago