The wine world in the Napa Valley, in a way, is analogous to the birth of the universe itself, it can all be traced back in time to one place, at one time when it all began - The Big Bang! And that place and time in the Napa Valley was the Crane Vineyard in the mid-19th century when Dr. George Belden Crane planted the first vines amongst the fruit trees and grazing cattle that surrounded him. Flashing forward to today, the Crane Assembly has created two wines from these gnarled, old, head pruned vines. The GB Crane Cabernet, a dense and rich beauty with great intensity, silky tannins and seemingly infinite finish, and “El Coco”, a

red blend of Zinfandel and Petite Sirah that is plush and dense with black, briery fruits wrapped in toasty. delicious oak. The mouthfeel is unctuous, rich and “hedonistic” as one might say. In addition they’ve created, Disciples, a wine from vineyards planted with budwood from this historic site. Predominantly Zinfandel, this wine jumps out of the glass with

blackberry coulis, juniper and toast. Fantastic acidity carries the wine through to a satisfyingly long, lingering finish. These wines should be a part of any wine list or collector’s cellar.