Drinkward-Peschon - A True Cabernet

I tried rewriting this piece that I gleaned from their website, but honestly, this encapsulates everything I would have wanted to say:

“Entre Deux Mères literally translates from the French as “Between Two Mothers”. Our friendship was initiated by our children and grew through a love of wine, work and play.

In September of 2000, we were fortunate enough to secure a few tons of Cabernet Sauvignon from a small grower in Oakville. The grapes were hand picked and sorted, and we crushed and fermented them in small lots. Our little project had begun. Our philosophy of making wine is similar to our philosophy of raising children – give them a lot of tender loving care, nurture always, then let them go on to express themselves and become the unique individuals they were meant to be. We believe that our gentle handling and minimalist intervention in winemaking yields unique wines that are elegant and balanced – a true expression of their roots.

Now as we enter our 22nd year, our children are all grown up, and our project remains exactly as we envisioned: small, hands on, and honest. We couldn’t do what we do without the hard work and dedication of our growers and the many vineyard workers whose labor we respect and admire. We feel it shows in our wine.”

But let me fill in a few of the blanks. Lisa Drinkward and Francoise Peschon were introduced to each other by their children and became fast friends. The wine is made by both Francoise Peschon and Lisa Drinkward. Peschon is the former winemaker at Araujo vineyards in Napa - a serious cult winery, while Drinkward is the wife of Les Behrens (of Behrens Family Winery). The wine is made at Behrens Family Winery on Spring Mountain. The wine is produced in minuscule quantities, The 2000 vintage was the first they produced, and their Cabernet Sauvignon is the only wine they bottle.

Back to the present and reality sets in. The Californian fires, and in particular the Glass Fire of September 2020, struck the Behrens and Hitchcock winery. “All of our barrels from the 2019 & 2020 vintages were in those buildings. Fortunately, we bottled our 2018 in August and moved most of our wine down to Napa for storage. Unfortunately, we had not yet moved our 2018 magnums to the warehouse and those were also consumed, so we only have the 750s to offer.” Their entire production of 2019 and 2020 was destroyed. The California fires have devastated so many wineries and vineyards but on the East Coast we really are desensitized to what actually happened. Yes, fortunately for us these two mothers were able to rescue their 2018 Cabernet, but now we will have to wait at least another year before we can possibly repurchase. And that will depend significantly on the degree of smoke and ash taint that many grapes in the region will bear. Less than 750 cases of the 2018 were produced. I have one of them left.

The 2018 burst from the glass with wafts of crushed dried blueberries, lavender and gorse. There is a sauvage to the aromatics that are utterly beguiling and yet contained on the palate. This is not your typical Cali Cab steak house wine. This is complexity, enticement, longevity. Baskets of blue and black fruit vie for attention with cedar, bark and rose-hip entwined. The label is very similar to that of Dunn Cabernet Sauvignon, and thee resemblance continues in the bottle. Spectacular Cabernet from California

$99 per bottle.