2007 Firebelle

According to winemaker Andy Smith, afternoon temperatures at this property on Larkmead Lane south of Calistoga reached 100 degrees in 2008 every day from August 27 to September 7. Happily, even though the growing season tends to be abbreviated here-due in large part to early flowering-the harvest didn't start until September 13. Still, Smith describes 2008 as a short season, and the wines are forward and fruit-driven. The Larkmead 2007s have turned out fresh and suave. If they do not have quite the power of the uncommonly structured 2006s made here (Larkmead benefited from the much later harvest in '06), they will offer more early appeal.

Recent vintages from this historic property just south of Calistoga had performed consistently well in my peer-group tastings of Napa Valley wines, so I figured it was time for a visit. The multitalented Andy Smith, who is also responsible for superb chardonnays, pinot noirs and syrahs under the DuMol label, clearly has the touch for Bordeaux varieties as well. He came aboard here in 1999 and has helped owners Kate Solari Baker and Cam Baker expand their range of offerings from just a merlot and cabernet sauvignon back then (the varietal merlot bottling ended in 2002). Larkmead, whose history dates back to the late 19th century, has 150 acres planted on low-vigor valley floor soils (rock and loam with sand, silt and clay) and still sells off about 55% of its fruit. (Except for a tiny parcel of 115-year-old tocai friulano, the oldest (re-)plantings here went in in 1992). The winery currently bottles about 10,000 cases, with the estate cabernet accounting for nearly half of this total. Incidentally, winemaker Smith was not the only person in the northern reaches of Napa Valley to tell me that the 2006 vintage here was a very successful one, albeit challenging. "We typically have a short growing season here, with a late flowering and early harvesting generally producing elegant wines," he told me. "So we tend to do especially well in the later vintages." The cabernet harvest didn't begin until October 10 in 2006 (or nearly three weeks later than that of 2007). Still, the low yields of 2007, a steady ripening process, and cool nights in August and September produced another very successful crop of wines, with alcohol levels actually a bit lower than those of 2006. "The '07s are bigger than the '06s, with softer fruit," said Smith. "They may also have a softer structure."