We recently had the opportunity to meet with Tony Biagi and taste the Hourglass portfolio of wines. Tony is the (new) Winemaker for Hourglass with 2012 his maiden Hourglass vintage. But Tony isn’t new to winemaking with over 20 years of Napa Valley experience, including time at Duckhorn and almost 10 years making wine for Plumpjack/Cade.
Once seated and introductions were offered, Tony was quickly scanning the wine menu looking for a light refreshing white. In a sign of support, he asked our host distributor, Kimberly Jones Selections which whites they carried at the restaurant. But that particular restaurant only carried some of their red inventory. Tony settled on a Trimbach Riesling to pair with the light salads and open our palettes.
Shortly thereafter though, they rolled out the Hourglass line for presentation and description of what the 2012 vintage offered. They included the following:
Hourglass HG III – This is their entry level Cabernet that blends both Blueline fruit with the Estate fruit for a price point friendly Napa Valley cabernet. While not a bad wine, the others in the flight clearly surpassed in quality, bouquet and mouthfeel.
Hourglass Blueline Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon – Blueline is their latest Estate vineyard that was replanted in 2007 with classic Napa Valley cab clones including Clones 4 & 7. This cabernet was very good with a beautiful nose to it. Fruit forward, but not jammy and overdone, well balanced.
Hourglass Estate Cabernet Sauvignon (2012) – The Estate Cabernet is their flagship and with one sip it becomes obvious. This wine, while the fruit is evident, it isn’t as dominant, more oak and tannins, a wine with more finesse and stronger backbone. Greater aging potential. Truly and elegant wine that will cellar for decades if desired. Robert Parker has rated the 2012 95+
Hourglass Estate Cabernet Sauvignon (2011) – They brought a bottle of the 2011 for comparison purposes. I think they have a little left in stock, but mostly sold. This too was a solid wine, although the challenges of the vintage seemed apparent. I commented that it seemed more tannic and while this wasn’t Tony’s wine, he responded with “picked earlier….. the grapes weren’t as developed”.
Thank you to Tony and Kimberly Jones Selections, we’re proud to be one of the first to offer the 2012 Hourglass Estate Cabernet on our site. Follow the link below for more information.