Diamond & Key Panek Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon St Helena 2018

The vintners of Diamond & Key Wines are no strangers to the dedication necessary to be the very best in your field.  Very literally, for one, because for Nolan Arenado, that excellence is sought after on the baseball diamond as a St. Louis Cardinal.  Likewise, his business partner, and Golden State Warrior star, Klay Thompson, can attest to the determination required to become an elite athlete.  Their fortitude now translates into the pursuit of knowledge and achievement in winemaking.  The childhood friends have garnered much success in their young careers, with nine Golden Gloves and three NBA Championships.  And while the two are familiar with Napa, having appreciated fine wines for many years, becoming vintners is a new frontier.  Truthfully, it was not until 2017, when Klay met a slew of winemakers and vintners, that creating a wine for themselves became more than just a pipe dream.

After the devastating fires in 2017, Klay played a crucial role in partnering with the North Bay Relief Fund.  Through this organization, he helped raise over $10 million for the victims and got to know the Napa community on a deeper level.   The winemaker he connected with most was Joe Harden.  It certainly makes sense, as Joe is known throughout the valley for his love of basketball and his semi-pro career in the NBA G-League after studying viticulture at UC Davis.  With his extensive experience as the winemaker for Nickel & Nickel, Salty Goats, and Fluent Wine, Company, Joe could not have been a better match for Klay & Nolan.  A significant deciding factor for Joe signing on to the Diamond & Key team was his sincere belief that this was not just another celebrity vanity project.  Klay and Nolan expressed a genuine desire to learn the ins and outs of winemaking; he even offered to help facilitate a relationship with a larger winery to buy a barrel and label it as their own.  But Klay and Nolan said no; they were all in and ready to discover the behind-the-scenes part of making wine.

During one “lesson,” Joe brought the duo to the Panek Vineyard in St. Helena.  The 5.5-acre parcel is planted to solely Cabernet Sauvignon and rests on the valley floor, atop alluvial soils deposited from the streams running off the Mayacamas Mountains many years ago.  In Joe’s opinion, the twenty years old vines are well-seasoned and “produce wines of great intensity with smooth, supple tannins.”  Panek is in the smack dab middle of St. Helena, benefiting from long, slow ripening periods in the shadow of the Mayacamas and with its well-draining gravelly loam soils.  They learned the style of wines produced from this tiny plot matched their palates and vision for their wine.

The Diamond & Key team produced only 8 barrels of this debut 2018 vintage.  The 100% Cabernet Sauvignon wine aged 18 months in 70% new French oak before bottling.  It’s a powerhouse Cabernet, dark-fruited with rich chocolate and spicy aromas that meld into a full-bodied, round palate.  Tannins are lusciously smooth and woven with just enough acidity to brighten the high tones of ripe black plum and Kirsch liqueur and lift the long finish.  A winning inaugural release from the Diamond & Key team, undoubtedly worthy of champions and our cherished clients.