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Monterey Bay Wine Co
Alma de Cattleya Cabernet Sauvignon, Napa Valley
Alma de Cattleya Cabernet Sauvignon, Napa Valley
The Wine
Noted winemaker, Bibiana Gonzalez, has produced a Napa Valley Cabernet that defies convention. Here we have a wine that is a vibrant, modern expression showing lift, polish, and immediate charm.
The wine opens with aromas of cassis, redcurrant (tart and cassis-like), and ripe black cherries, accented by fresh cedar, anise, and a touch of loamy earth. Subtle notes of vanilla, dark chocolate, and black licorice weave in as it breathes, giving the nose both freshness and depth.
On the palate, it’s juicy, supple, and medium to full in body, driven by a core of red and black berry fruit that suggest energy over heaviness. The tannins are fine, velvety, and approachable, lending structure without tongue-drying austerity.
Pairings: Ribeye steak grilled with a rosemary branch used to brush olive oil on the steak before grilling (and immediately after). Lamb chops marinated in juniper or thyme. Cheeseburger with aged cheddar and caramelized onion jam. Or a cheese course featuring aged Gouda, Comte and Gruyere!
The Winery
Bibiana González Rave is a young and influential force of nature. Through sheer grit and determination, she took a love of wine, developed from stolen sips from her father's glass at the dinner table, and moved to France to work in the vineyards to pay for her education, eventually earning viticulture & enology degrees, first in Cognac and then in Bordeaux. Fast forward a couple of decades and she is has worked at top producers around the globe before deciding to settle in California, where she continues to consult in addition to nurture her own brand, Alma de Cattleya.
The Label
The label is simple - plain text on a white label with an exotic orchid. Bibiana named her wine 'Cattleya' after the orchid - Cattleya Trinae - the native flower of her homeland, Colombia. She grew up in Medellin, the epicenter of drugs and cartels in the 80s and 90s. To grow out of this violent environment, Bibiana decided to build upon her family principles of hard work, tenacity, honesty, and pursuit of excellence in her unspoken dream of making wine one day. Her journey eventually brought her to California where Cattleya wines are made, each family principle being essential to her resulting wines.
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