Description
Located adjacent to the historic DANA winery at the base of the Mayacamas Mountains, Helms Vineyard is an 8-acre site on the western side of the Rutherford AVA. The site’s deep soils include abundant riverbed gravel with decomposed remnants of an ancient seabed. Fruit from this site is richly perfumed, with beautiful plummy fruit and heady aromatics. Dusty cocoa-powder tannins have a natural softness and viscosity that lend elegant volume to the wines. Cabernet Sauvignon from Helms Vineyard is DANA Estates’ most classically styled bottling, evoking the old world wines that inspired our project.
Critical Acclaim
98 points James Suckling
Incredible aromas of violets and other flowers, not to mention blackcurrants and incense. Medium to full body and firm and polished tannins. Seductive. Goes on for minutes. Extremely long. Shows wonderful potential. (01/2017)
97 points Jeb Dunnuck
The 2014 Cabernet Sauvignon Helms Vineyard offers brilliant freshness and elegance, with a complex, nuanced style in its bluer fruits, California bay leaf, violet, and damp earth aromas and flavors. It’s full-bodied and certainly has fruit galore, yet it’s the balance, finesse, and layered texture that set it apart. (01/2019)
96 points Vinous
The 2014 Cabernet Sauvignon Helms Vineyard is bright, focused and wonderfully nuanced in the glass. Medium in body, with silky tannins, the 2014 will drink well with minimal cellaring. It is fascinating to see how well the 2014 has come together over the last year. The flavors are vibrant – as they always have been – but the mid-palate has filled out very nicely. Succulent red cherry, plum, rose petal and spice notes lead into the nuanced, super-expressive finish. (AG, 03/2018)
95+ points Wine Advocate
The single-vineyards from their 58 acres of vines, includes the 2014 Cabernet Sauvignon Helms Vineyard, which is 100% Cabernet Sauvignon from Rutherford. Production is only about 300 cases. It is a slightly more complex wine than the Onda, but not more concentrated, as it has the same opulence and voluptuous texture, an endearing overall personality with abundant juicy blackcurrants and licorice and loamy soil undertones in a full-bodied, silky style. This wine spent 20 months in 90% new French oak prior to being bottled unfiltered. (RP, 10/2016)
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