Sloan
Estate was founded in 1997 when Stuart Sloan purchased 40 acres of land in the
eastern hills of the Rutherford AVA, which gave him a nice view of Auberge du
Soleil sitting just below his property. Sloan
quickly put together an all-star team to help accomplish his goal of making one
of the greatest Cabernet Sauvignons in all of Napa Valley. He hired famed Vineyard Manager, David
Abreu to plant 13 acres of the property with Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot,
Cabernet Franc, and Petit Verdot vines on the mineral-rich, porous soil of
fractured volcanic rock and sandy loam. The
perfect blend of white tufa soil, a cool marine influence, and generous sun
exposure forms the ideal site for growing fruit of a distinct quality and
crafting exceptional wines that are compelling expressions of these elements. He basically had just planted on a
goldmine. Mark Aubert was hired
as winemaker for Sloan and made the first vintage in 2000 and up until Martha
McClellan (Harlan, Levy & McClellan, Checkerboard among
the wines on her resume) took over winemaking in 2004. When the initial 2000 vintage was released in
2004, it was clear Sloan Estate's luscious, dense and complex Bordeaux Blends were
not to be taken lightly. Along with
world-renowned consulting oenologist Michel Rolland, this A-list team
has been responsible for handcrafting these epically exquisite and celebrated
wines ever since. With a limited annual
production of 600 cases, 100-point scores by critics many times over, and a
super-exclusive mailing list reserved for the most elite and long-standing collectors,
procuring Sloan Estate wines is next to impossible. But not today, not here...
Since
its debut with the 2004 vintage, ASTERISK Proprietary Red represents the second
selection from the estate, showcasing an alternate yet elegant and compelling
expression of the terroir. Charming and
bold, it is made from mostly Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot grapes. Produced under the same obsessive attention
to detail and unyielding standards as Sloan, Asterisk is juicy and sensual,
offering an explosion of fruit aromas and flavors. While it holds the promise of aging
potential, it is a splendidly inviting wine that is intended to satisfy the
desire for instant gratification.
"Bottled in March of 2019, it offers a medium to full-bodied, elegant
yet nicely concentrated style as well as plenty of ripe plum, tobacco,
sagebrush, and truffle-laced aromatics. It's a rich, fleshy, beautifully
balanced 2016 that has a touch of background oak to integrate, ripe tannins,
and a great finish. It's going to evolve for 20+ years." ~Jeb Dunnuck.
