2015 Michel-Schlumerger
"La Cime" Cabernet Sauvignon
Current Winery Price: $52. (See here.)
Our price on 1: $22. Buy here.
Our price on 6: Only $20! Buy here.
Our price on 12: Only $18! Buy here!
TL; DR: "La Cime:" it's French for "summit..." and this is as peak a value as any we'll offer this year! Get a highly pedigreed, organically farmed, French-tuned, estate-only Dry Creek Valley Cabernet... (from a neighbor of cult winery Rafanelli)... for over 65% off!
When we score a deal like this? We sometimes don't know where to start.
Do we begin with how their estate Cab vineyard neighbors Rafanelli's, one of the most under-the-radar producers in all of Sonoma's Dry Creek Valley region?
Do we lead with how Michel-Schlumberger makes its all-estate "La Cime" (French for "the peak") bottling from a blend of its best blocks of both mountain-top and benchland vineyards?
Do we get into how this winery's been around since the late 70's, when Jean-Jacques Michel, a native of Switzerland, decided he'd found what he surmised might be the best single spot outside of Bordeaux to make Old World-tuned Cabernet blends?
Do we sing to you of their proud and meticulous farming practices? (Their vineyard is organically certified, and they carefully deploy a team of sheep, goats, ladybugs, hawks and owls in their efforts.)
Or do we just tell you that -- at this very moment -- the wine is selling for $52 at the winery? And that we're selling it for $18 -- about a third of the cost, on the case buy?
Though it began as Domaine Michel, Michel-Schlumberger (pronounced Schlum-bur-jay) was incarnated as such about a decade later, when Jean-Jaques partnered with another European vintner, Jacques Schlumberger, whose family roots were over 400 years deep in Alsatian winemaking. Though the then-tiny partnership expanded its production over time, they've stayed pretty small, making about 6000 cases of estate wine annually (they also have a non-estate label that their estate wines should not be confused with; their Estate line comes entirely from their own holdings, from some of the top terroir in all of Dry Creek).
The 2015 Michel-Schlumberger "La Cime" Cabernet Sauvignon is their top wine, and it's only now entering its prime drinking window. The antithesis of a Napa bruiser, it's made in a balanced, Old World style; it's built upon a core of Cabernet Sauvignon, other Bordeaux varieties like Petit Verdot and Malbec add layers and depth. All the classic notes of dark blackberry fruit, plum, cassis, cocoa, and grilled bread are here. Textured, balanced, and smooth, with soft tannins, this is made for summer grilling season. (Decant this for an hour or two before throwing those ribeyes on the Weber!)
This is a gorgeous, classic Dry Creek Valley Cab, and one that makes sense at its usual winery price of $50+. But at our price? It practically seems like it's from another era! This is a wine you'll want to case up on while we have it!
2015 Michel-Schlumerger
"La Cime" Cabernet Sauvignon
Current Winery Price: $52. (See here.)
Our price on 1: $22. Buy here.
Our price on 6: Only $20! Buy here.
Our price on 12: Only $18! Buy here!