Aperture Winery Offering - KILLER wines from Jesse Katz

"Wine gives great pleasure, and every pleasure is of itself a good."
~ William Makepeace Thackeray

And there is nothing like Cabernet Sauvignon to give big red wine drinkers pleasure.  The role of the winemaker can be overplayed in the new world although it is amazing how some winemakers seem to just make great wines.  When it comes to young guns in California look at the wines that Jesse Katz has been involved with wineries iike Screaming Eagle he had worked on several continents already by the age of 30 and now his Aperture label is turning heads.  I gave two of his reds my highest accolade the KILLER score. 

We have been big fans of Jesse since we hosted an event with him in February of 2013 when he was plying his craft at Lancaster Winery with the Foley family of wines.  Jesse was featured in an article in Forbes Magazine entitled “30 under 30 to watch in the wine industry” and we knew at that time that we would be seeing him again with his own label, but I did not think it would be 8 years later.  Jessie was the first California winemaker to travel to Florida during the pandemic which gives him even more street cred with us, he risked his life to drink with us!!

New Releases and a few older vintage bottles of Aperture Wines from Jesse Katz

2022 APERTURE SAUVIGNON BLANC SONOMA COUNTY
Price: $48.00                   Your Price: $42.24
A blend of 98% Sauvignon Blanc and 2% Sémillon, the striking array of intricate tropical flavors and the stunning bouquet of floral aromatics in the 2019 Sauvignon Blanc demonstrates a is balanced by the varietal’s quintessential bright, natural acidity.

2022 APERTURE CHENIN BLANC NORTH COAST
Price: $27.00                   Your Price: $23.76              Quantity in Stock: 24
What began as a small-batch wine crafted for the perfect pairing with fresh seafood at one of winemaker Jesse Katz’s favorite hometown restaurants has turned into a classic favorite. Coming from the rich clay loam soils of an old vine California Chenin Blanc site, planted in the 1940s,  this vibrant wine showcases notes of passion fruit, nectarines, and honeysuckle with brightly lifted acidity giving way to a round, smooth mouthfeel.

2021 APERTURE RED BLEND SONOMA
Price: $48.00                   Your Price: $42.24
A blend of Malbec and Merlot from vines planted on clay soils, some of the fruit is estate and some is purchased from Jessie Katz a good amount of ripe black cherry, blueberry and currant berry fruit with notes of coco and licorice spice.  A rich and layered wine on the tongue with a solid core of fruit, a big wine but is also nicely balanced on the finish bit but fresh.  Finish 45+ Excellent +

2021 APERTURE CABERNET SAUVIGNON ALEXANDER VALLEY
Price: $82.50                   Your Price: $72.60              Quantity in Stock: 4
(96 Points)  The 2021 Cabernet Sauvignon comes from Aperture's estate vineyard in Healdsburg and their newest vineyard acquisition, Farrow Ranch in Alexander Valley, plus some of the original single vineyards in the Aperture program like Oliver Ranch. It is blended with 6% Petit Verdot, 5% Merlot, 3% Malbec and 1% Cabernet Franc and was matured for 16 months in 55% new French oak. It has vibrant, layered aromas of blueberry compote, lavender, aniseed, milk chocolate and nutmeg with undertones of cast iron and tobacco leaves. The medium-bodied palate is elegantly styled, pairing deep flavors with a weightless feel due to its bright acidity and velvety tannins. It has a long, latent finish and deserves 3-5 years in bottle.  Robert Parker's Wine Advocate

2018 APERTURE CABERNET SAUVIGNON OLIVER RANCH
Price: $238.00   Your Price: $209.44        Quantity in Stock: 12
“Deep ruby-purple, the 2018 Cabernet Sauvignon Oliver Ranch Vineyard slowly unfolds its wings to pure violet, cassis, tobacco leaves and pencil shavings, bright notes of mint chocolate, cedar and exotic spices. The palate is stunning, fanning out seamlessly from graphite to chocolate and intense, perfectly ripe blackcurrant fruit. The tannins are extraordinarily pixelated, the freshness is bright but integrated, and it has a Goldilocks ripeness! An extraordinary Cabernet Sauvignon from Alexander Valley.” 98 pts – Erin Brooks, Robert Parker’s The Wine Advocate

2017 APERTURE CABERNET SAUVIGNON ALEXANDER VALLEY OLIVER RANCH VINEYARD
Price: $150.00                 Your Price: $132.00              Quantity in Stock: 4
Wine Watch Review:  Loamy soils and this site specific wine has and incredible nose, espresso, smoke, graphite and sweet tobacco spice with dark chocolate and more as this wine opens big and fruity cassis and currants wow.  A big and chewy wine with a good amount of spice and toasty oak but also has some mineratiy showing even at this young age where the fruit is so prevalent.  A blockbuster with layers of fruit, toasty oak spice and a firm hand of acidity.  Finish 50+ KILLER

2017 Aperture Cabernet Sauvignon Alexander Valley Del Rio Vineyard
Price: $142.50   Your Price: $125.40        Quantity in Stock: 2

Chalky volcanic soils and this is one of the highest vineyards in the Chalk Hill appellation and is 100% varietal dark currant and cassis berry fruit with wonderful richness very complex bouquet lots of everything.  A big and chewy wine with plush tannins and a lovely balance despite its size but layered and long finish.  Finish 50+ KILLER

2018 APERTURE CABERNET SAUVIGNON SJ RACH ALEXANDER VALLEY
Price: $238.00                 Your Price: $209.44              Quantity in Stock: 2
(97 Points) One Of My Favorites In The Lineup, The 2018 Cabernet Sauvignon Sj Ranch Checks In As 100% Cabernet Sauvignon That Spent 22 Months In 85% New Barrels. It Is Just Pure, Classic Cabernet Sauvignon All The Way, Giving Up A Dense Purple Color, Full-Bodied Aromas And Flavors Of Cassis, Tobacco, Violets, Chocolate, And Lead Pencil, Flawless Balance, Building Tannins, And A Sensational Finish. As With The Del Rio, It's The Overall Balance And Purity That Set It Apart. Bravo! (Jd) (7/2021)  Jeb Dunnuck

A bit about Aperture Winery:

Wine is an artistic expression as personal and universal as photography. So it only makes sense that Andy and Jesse Katz would finally find a way to work together to produce some of the most stunning wines from California.

Wine is an artistic expression as personal and universal as photography. So it only makes sense that Andy and Jesse Katz would finally find a way to work together to produce some of the most stunning wines from California.

It’s all come full circle now with Aperture: Jesse makes the wine—some of the most critically lauded in the world—and Andy supplies the photos. Andy’s vision, Jesse’s taste, smell, and touch… Treat yourself to a dance of the senses compliments of two gifted artists.

The wines, and the winery, are just the entry point into Andy and Jesse’s unique world where we incorporate art and wine and all the elements of nature in one game-changing space. We think of our winery as a platform and an incubator for expressing art and the creativity of wine, and the intersection of both.

As a boy traveling with his well known wine country photographer father, Andy, winemaker Jesse Katz was exposed at an early age to the most famous wine regions on earth. While his father was taking photographs and creating books in Burgundy or Tuscany, the seed was being planted. Later, as a young man working summers in the vineyards and winery lab while attending Fresno State University in California it wasn't long before Jesse had his Enology Degree with a minor in chemistry. After honing his craft in Napa and Argentina, Jesse was recruited from cult producer Screaming Eagle in 2010 and quickly established that he understood how to build on the tradition of excellence that has defined Lancaster Estate from the very first vintage. Working with legendary winemakers like Andy Ericson, Paul Hobbs, Hans Vinding-Diers and Robert Foley shortcuts the process of absorbing a lifetime of winemaking insights.  Working in an array of climates and countries brings added depth.  With dust on his boots, Jesse has quickly learned what the estate vineyards promise.

Jesse Katz has, in a remarkably short period of time, made himself into one of the most respected wine professionals in California. He was the first winemaker ever to be included in the Forbes 30 Under 30 list, a Wine Enthusiast 40 Under 40 Tastemaker, and had been named a Wine Spectator “Rising Star.”

Jesse’s mission for Aperture is to find the top cool-climate spots around California for his beloved Bordeaux varieties to thrive in. For Devil Proof Vineyards, it’s all about dry-farmed Malbec—the variety for which Jesse earned the highest-ever scores from Wine Spectator, Robert Parker, Jr. of The Wine Advocate, and Wine Enthusiast.

Eighteen harvests learning from the best producers in the world—Petrus, Screaming Eagle, Viña Cobos, Bodega Noemia, and more—have led to this moment at Aperture, where his wines have generated buzz and critical acclaim in equal measure. Jesse has earned it all: A lifetime of preparation has led to this moment.