Concannon Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon Paso Robles 2014
$16.99 at Crush Wine & Spirits
91 points – Wine Enthusiast
Wine Style:
87% Cabernet Sauvignon / 6.5% Petite Verdot / 6.5% Petite Sirah
Red cherry, ripe plum, and blackcurrant with hints of cocoa, vanilla, and spice.
Concannon Vineyards is steep in California’s wine history. Since 1883, Concannon has been a pioneer in the development of California Cabernet Sauvignon. Due to vines from the vineyards of Concannon (Concannon Clone 7, 8, 11), an estimated 80% of California’s 90,000 acres of Cabernet Sauvignon vines can be traced back to the Cancannon clones developed in 1965 from cuttings from Chateaux Margaux, Lafite, and d’Yquem.
Concannon Vineyards is also the producer of America’s first Petite Sirah.
John Concannon heads the family operation that is now in its fourth generation.
Founder: James Concannon immigrated to America from Ireland when he was eighteen years old. He studied winemaking both in Bordeaux and at UC Berkeley. In 1883, he chose Livermore Valley because it was similar to Bordeaux’s terroir. Similar to the Atlantic Ocean’s influence on Bordeaux, the Pacific Ocean air comes through the nearby San Francisco bay area every day cooling off the sun’s influence. This enables the grapes to develop both ripe sugars and firm acids. He brought back from Bordeaux vines vines that were virus-resistant. These vines planted in Livermore became known as Concannon Clone 7, 8, 11.
Second Generation: Joe Concannon, known as Captain Joe, carried on his father’s work. He kept the vines alive during prohibition. He was a founding member of The Wine Institute in 1934. He became one of the first winemakers in the world to bottle Cabernet Sauvignon as a single varietal wine. He also hired one of the first technically trained women, Katherine Vajda, to serve as Concannon’s lead winemaker during the 1950s.
Third Generation: Jim Concannon became the lead winemaker in 1960. In 1964, he made America’s first Petite Sirah with the 1961 vintage. Jim is the one who collaborated with UC Davis in developing the Concannon Cabernet Clones 7, 8, 11 from a single vine propagated from extraordinary Cabernet that his grandfather, James, had imported from Château Margaux in 1893. It is this clone from which over 80% of California Cabernet Sauvignon vines originate.
Fourth Generation: John Concannon today carries on the family tradition. He took the reigns from his father in 2008. In 2009, Concannon Vineyards became one of the first in California to become certified sustainable. Under his watch, the Livermore estate winery completed a ten-year revitalization project which included the restoration of the original winery and use of solar-power.
