Heitz Cellar Martha's Vineyard spotlight
The official Heitz Cellar channel presents the house from this St. Helena estate. Martha's Vineyard is Heitz's own Oakville flagship vineyard, the site in this 2017 bottle.
2017 Heitz Cellar Martha's Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley, USA
Brittany Sherwood's Oakville flagship, mint and cassis from Martha's Vineyard, a 96-point 2017 you can open at two hundred twenty dollars.
The 2017 Martha's Vineyard is 100 percent Cabernet Sauvignon from Tom and Martha May's Oakville bench: ripe black fruit, dark chocolate, sweet bay, eucalyptus, and cassis, now $220.
Napa's first vineyard-designate Cabernet, still speaking Oakville
Joe Heitz put Martha's Vineyard on a Cabernet label in 1966, the first American vineyard-designated Cabernet of its kind. The Oakville bench sits in morning sun and Mayacamas shade. Brittany Sherwood's 2017 is a warm-year Martha's: ripe black fruit, dark chocolate, sweet bay, then eucalyptus and cassis on a streamlined frame. Decanter 96. Wine Advocate 95. This is Heitz's Oakville flagship, not the Napa Valley house bottling and not Lot C-91.
The vineyard
Tom and Martha May's Oakville bench against the Mayacamas. Martha's Clone, small berries, the mint and bay leaf that made the site famous.
The wine
100% Cabernet Sauvignon. Four years in used and new French oak. 14.2% ABV. CCOF organic farming.
The scores
Decanter 96. Wine Advocate 95. Wine Spectator 94. Wine Enthusiast 94. Warm-year Martha's, still aristocratic.
The drinker
Mint and cassis first. Decant 45 to 60 minutes. Serve 60 to 64 F. Herb-crusted lamb or pan-seared steak.
Mint and bay, then cassis, chocolate, and iron
Heitz's own note is ripe black fruit, dark chocolate, and sweet bay, robust yet soft tannin, bright acidity. Decanter found dark berry, brown spice, plum, dark chocolate, mint, ironstone, and charcuterie. Wine Advocate found gentle eucalyptus and vanilla on bolder cassis and black cherry, aristocratic, silky. Wine Spectator led with mint and sweet bay leaf, then iris, hibiscus, red currant, cherry, worn cedar, and sanguine notes.
A warm Napa red year. Martha's still shows the mint, bay, and eucalyptus the site is famous for, with more concentration than a cool year and a streamlined, not heavy, frame.
Black fruit, cassis, black cherry, mint, sweet bay, eucalyptus, dark chocolate.
Medium to full, 14.2% ABV, firm aristocratic tannin, silky finish.
Sage, cedar, iron, length. Decant 45 to 60 minutes. Serve 60 to 64 F.
Martha's Clone, then the long Heitz elevage
On the Heitz sheet, Martha's Clone makes small, intensely purple berries with a minty aroma. Only the best barrels from the vineyard are bottled as Martha's Vineyard. The 2017 aged four years in used and new French oak. Brittany Sherwood wants the site's mint, bay leaf, dark berry, and chocolate, not a wood speech. This is the Oakville flagship, not Lot C-91.
The vineyard sits against the Mayacamas on the western Oakville bench. Afternoon shade lengthens hang time. Certified CCOF organic.
Decant 45 to 60 minutes. Serve just below room temperature so mint and eucalyptus stay in front of the chocolate.
The vineyard that taught Napa to name the dirt
In the mid-1960s Joe Heitz struck an agreement with Tom May for fruit from May's small Oakville vineyard. The 1966 Martha's Vineyard was Napa's first concerted vineyard-designated Cabernet.
The site is tucked against the Mayacamas on the western Oakville bench. Afternoon shade lengthens hang time. The proprietary clone is the mint.
Joe and Alice Heitz founded the cellar in 1961. The 1970 Martha's vintage represented Napa at the 1976 Judgment of Paris.
Gaylon Lawrence acquired Heitz in 2018. Carlton McCoy and Brittany Sherwood have kept the wines classical. This 2017 is that Oakville handshake in a warmer year.
Herbs on lamb, a hard sear on steak
Martha's mint, bay leaf, and firm fruit want herb crust and browned beef. The tannin is silky enough for a pan sauce.
Two plates. One herb-crusted rack of lamb. One pan-seared steak with red-wine pan sauce.
Decant 45 to 60 minutes. Serve 60 to 64 F. A large Cabernet glass lets mint, chocolate, and iron open together.
Mustard and Herb-Crusted Rack of Lamb
Mustard, herbs, and a pink center. The plate that meets Martha's mint without covering it.
Why it works: Herb crust echoes mint and bay leaf while lamb fat handles the tannin and the chocolate close.
View Recipe for mustard and herb-crusted rack of lamb (opens in a new tab)
Pan-Seared Steaks with Red Wine Pan Sauce
A hard crust and a glossy jus. Classical Heitz at the steak table.
Why it works: Browned beef and reduction meet cassis and cedar. Acidity refreshes the fat.
View Recipe for pan-seared steaks with red wine pan sauce (opens in a new tab)Put Martha's Vineyard in the cart
Brittany Sherwood, Oakville, Decanter 96. Two hundred twenty dollars.
Put six in the cart. This is Heitz's Oakville flagship, mint and cassis from Martha's Vineyard, not a generic Napa Cabernet.
