In 2018, a wet winter led into a dry and evenly warm season, resulting in gradual ripening and a relaxed, controlled harvest. Our flagship Toymaker Cabernet Sauvignon is a transparent expression of the vintage, where the keyword is balance. The 2018 Toymaker is rich and opulent, yet detailed, restrained in style, and terroir-driven, due to its fully ripe, but not overripe, style. 

Winemaker: Martha McClellan

Varietal: Cabernet Sauvignon (100%)

AVA: Napa Valley

Barrel aging: 28 months Medium+ Taransaud French oak (100% new)

Alc.: 14.9%

Production: 237 cases

Score: 97+ (Lisa Perrotti-Brown, MW, The Wine Independent)

The single-varietal 2018 Cabernet Sauvignon is deep garnet-purple in color. It prances out of the glass with flamboyant notes of redcurrant jelly, Morello cherries, and blackcurrant pastilles, followed by suggestions of dried mint, espresso, and pencil shavings with a waft of unsmoked cigars. The full-bodied palate offers mineral-laced vibrancy and bags of freshness, supported by firm, fine-grained tannins, finishing with compelling red berry and floral sparks.

- Lisa Perrotti-Brown, MW, The Wine Independent (3/8/23)

The 2017 growing season started with significant rainfall, marking the end of a six-year drought. Following bud break in the spring, summer featured typical Napa Valley weather with uniformly warm days and cool nights, which contributed to even ripening of the high-elevation, mountainside grapes and maintenance of balancing acidity. Heat waves in late August and early September assisted in the maturation of our grapes for harvest. Our flagship wine, 2017 Toymaker, was aged 28 months in new French oak prior to bottling and an additional 18 months in bottle prior to release.

Winemaker: Martha McClellan

Varietal: Cabernet Sauvignon (100%)

AVA: Napa Valley

Barrel aging: 28 months Taransaud French oak (100% new)

Alc.: 15.1%

Production: 105 cases

Tasting Notes: Dark ruby in color, the 2017 Toymaker leads with a panoply of bright red fruits and black cherries, aromatic cedar, hints of chocolate, and a kiss of creamy oak on the nose. On the palate, the entry is broad but lithe, featuring cherry notes that echo the aromas, set against a backdrop of ripe and supple tannins that lend structure and volume to the lingering finish. The 2017 vintage has bestowed on Toymaker a beguiling elegance that makes the wine approachable now but with a structure to age gracefully for many years in your cellar.

The outstanding 2016 growing season was marked by hot and dry weather but no prolonged extremes or heat spikes. Our flagship wine, the 2016 Toymaker was aged 28 months in new French oak prior to bottling and, with an 18 additional months of bottle aging prior to release, is already hitting its stride as it enters the early portion of its lengthy drinking window.

Winemaker: Martha McClellan

Varietal: Cabernet Sauvignon (100%)

AVA: Napa Valley

Barrel aging: 28 months Taransaud French oak (100% new)

Alc.: 15.1%

Production: 200 cases

Tasting Notes: Dark garnet-ruby in color with an expressive nose of red and black cherries, warm baking spices, and sweet oak, the 2016 Toymaker fans out on the palate with an expansive wave of cherries, cassis, and graphite, wrapped in powerful, ripe tannins that are supple in texture and linger on an extended finish, suggesting a long life ahead for those patient enough to let some bottles rest in their cellar.

The hot and dry conditions of the 2015 growing season, coinciding with the fourth of what would become a six-year-long drought in California, resulted in an uncharacteristically low crop yield of exceptionally high-quality Cabernet Sauvignon fruit. Early season above-average temperatures gave way to a consistently warm and long summer, leading to an earlier-than-usual ripening of the grapes. This, along with very little rain throughout the growing season, allowed the grape skins to mature and thicken, resulting in wines of great depth, concentration, smooth tannins, and moderate acidity, making the wine ideal for aging.

The 2015 Toymaker Cabernet Sauvignon was made by winemaker Martha McClellan from 100% Diamond Mountain District fruit. It was barrel-fermented and aged for 28 months in all new French oak, with an additional 24 months of bottle aging. This wine is exquisitely balanced, providing a lush burst of ripe red fruit on the front palate, velvety tannins that unfold across the midpalate revealing exceptional structure and depth, and a dense and lasting finish.

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For the third year in a row, the superb growing season of 2014 ushered in a vintage that surpassed expectations. Late February rains, on the heels of one of the driest winters on record, gave way to a surprisingly early bud break and an advantageously long period for the grapes to mature and ripen. Spring’s brisk bloom was followed quickly by moderate summer temperatures ranging on average between 80 and 90 degrees Fahrenheit—optimal conditions for producing wines of great depth, concentration and rich, ripe tannins. Conditions remained consistent and favorable throughout the summer and up to veraison, leading to a stunningly bountiful harvest of flawless and fully matured fruit.

The 2014 Toymaker is the culminating taste of this unique and extraordinary vintage. Like the long growing season itself, luscious, ripe, red fruit notes draw a seamless thread of distinguished flavor and texture across the palate, leaving a long, powerfully dense and opulent finish indicative of beautifully matured supple skin tannins.

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A warm, dry spring in 2013 led to an earlier than usual bud break. On through bloom and into mid-summer, temperatures were slightly erratic, ranging from uncharacteristically warm to sometimes quite cold. Shortly before veraison, these fluctuations calmed, providing an ideal uniformity of daytime temperatures and just about as close to a perfect weather pattern as one can get. Lasting through color, flavor development and on into a stunning harvest, it is to these conditions that we attribute the densely concentrated flavors, fully mature seeds, and supple skin tannins that have made the 2013 vintage receive such high accolades.

Dark ruby red in the glass and with aromas of dark berry confection, dried dates, musky spice, and pure cacao, the 2013 Toymaker is a blend of true pleasures. The mouth is one of an ever-evolving intensity that continues to divulge layer upon layer of rich flavors of dark chocolate, slow roasted almonds, fruit compote, and savory blackberry jam. The wine finishes ever so seductively with its mineral purity, velvety seamlessness, and a seemingly unending presentation of an exotic and densely fruit driven structure.

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The 2012 growing season offered dry weather conditions and moderate temperatures. The few spells of high heat that were interspersed throughout allowed for an optimal ripening of the fruit and full maturation of the tannins. Harvest came at a leisurely pace, letting us pick at the most ideal circumstances possible. The resulting wines are succulent, bursting with ripe flavors, and seamless in their balance and purity.

On the nose, the 2012 Toymaker has hints of warm cherry tart, ripe fig, baking spice, and fresh lavender. The palette is rich with sweet tannins, luscious red and black fruits, cream de cassis, and candied almonds. The moderate alcohol levels and slightly higher acidity lend a delightfully charming character of bright finesse, mouth-watering fruit, and a finish of on-going layers and length.

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