first Crush
Wine With heart eHLerS eState gIveS ItS aLL for your HeaLtH By XanIa Woodman PHotograPHy antHony maIr
UNDER PRESSURE
2002 debut of “1886,” a cabernet sauvignon
the most accessible and widely available of the ehlers estate portfolio is also the one that most gets to the heart of the matter: the 2009 ehlers estate “one twenty over eighty” (a play on the measurement of a healthy adult’s blood pressure) is a dense, rich and juicy cabernet sauvignon hailing from the loamy benchland parcels. It’s $102 per bottle at Sinatra in Encore Las Vegas (702.770.5320; wynnlasvegas.com),$45 retail at Khoury’s Fine Wine & Spirits.
from the estate’s rockiest parcels. the 2008
EARTH-FRIENDLY, TOO
a small-production property occupying 43
In keeping with the winery’s marriage of quality and conscience, ehlers estate is at the forefront of environmentally aware farming practices. Winemaker Kevin morrisey passionately crafts certified organic and biodynamic wines that are voluptuous, generous, site-specific and terroir-driven.
dine
OenOphiles Often jOke abOut wine dOing a bOdy gOOd, but at One napa Valley, California, winery, its very real health benefits are made manifest. from 1985 to 2001, french entrepreneur and philanthropist jean leducq and his wife, sylviane, carefully acquired prized parcels in nearby st. helena, which included the original 14-acre bernard ehlers estate, built in 1886. with the release of their inaugural 2000 cabernet sauvignon, the leducqs honored the place’s original owner by naming the new winery ehlers estate. since jean’s passing in 2002, the couple’s not-for-profit leducq foundation has operated ehlers estate, donating 100 percent of the proceeds to cardiovascular research— more than $30 million annually—thus making every sip a true toast to your health.
ehlers estate “1886” ($100 at Khoury’s Fine Wine & Spirits; khourysfinewine.com) is highly regarded by both Wine Spectator and robert Parker’s The Wine Advocate.
DEEP IN THE HEART OF NAPA after experiencing some of the valley’s larger producers, it’s a charming change of scenery to turn off the St. Helena Highway and travel down the rustic path to ehlers estate, contiguous acres of rolling valley floor just north of downtown St. Helena. tastings are by appointment, $25 per person for up to six people. ehlersestate.com
BET ON RED Less than 7 percent of ehlers estate’s nearly 40 cultivated acres of small vineyard blocks is
A VERY GOOD YEAR
dedicated to white-wine grapes. If you go, try
Bernard ehlers built his historic stone winery in 1886. to commemorate the year, the Leducqs once again paid homage to ehlers with the
the sauvignon blanc and Sylviane cabernet franc rosé, but save room for the full-bodied reds for which ehlers is renown.
INSIDER tIP / In keeping with the giving spirit, curvature Wines (curvaturewines.com) donates proceeds to breast-cancer research; for each bottle sold, Lookout ridge (lookoutridge.com) donates a wheelchair to someone in need; and canine Wines (caninewines.com) donates $5 from each bottle sold and at least 10 percent of its annual profits to animal-rescue organizations. finally, Humanitas Wines (humanitaswines.com) lets you decide where the donated proceeds of your purchase go.
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