WANTED: Bates Ranch Cabernet Sauvignons

Commerce Corner - Wine Classifieds
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I am interested in all makers and all vintages, particularly looking for wines with bottle age.
Anything from one bottle to one case per wine.

Thank you.

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Several vintages here.

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Paging @JeffEmery

I believe you can request the library offerings here:
info@santacruzmountainvineyard.com

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Hi Dan and thanks to @J_Patrick_Lynch for the ping to me or I wouldn’t have noticed this post.

We made Bates Ranch from 1978 through 1994 vintages and then again, in a new project, from 2017 onward. The 2017 is the current release and is only made from the 8 remaining original planted rows of the upper vineyard from 1972. More details about that project on our website here: https://www.santacruzmountainvineyard.com/grandcrucabernet

As to those much older Bates Ranch cabs, in all honesty I’ve become rather stingy with the few I have left, using them for special wine dinners and such. That said, @Robert_Dentice convinced me to put together a short list of a few I would be willing to part with, so I do have up to date inventory amounts and prices at hand. From this 1978 to 1994 range it would only be on the order of a bottle or two here and there. I have officially released a lot of Santa Cruz Mountains Cabernet Sauvignon and Pinot Noir from the library from what I call our “mid-aged” library: roughly 1999 to 2011, but no Bates Ranch in those years. For either mid-aged Library list or to see the few older Bates I might part with please email me directly.

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So interesting that you should seek these out as it is absolutely one of my favorite cabernet vineyards in the world. I hoard the Ahlgren, Thunder Mountain and Santa Cruz Vineyards wines and actively search for them at auction (Acker had quite a few awhile back). I am having a Bates Ranch 4 decades cab tasting this summer starting with an 86 Ahlgren and ending with a 2023 Farm Cottage. Kenny at Ghostwriter made some lovely wines from there. I think vines were ripped out and replanted awhile back so later iterations are not quite apples to apples. Sander and Hem also makes a Bates cab, which I have in the cellar but have not tried yet.

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Hi Loren,

Where’s my invitation???

More seriously, I visited Sandar and Hem recently. I’ve had their 2020 and 2021 Bates Ranch Cabs, made in a lighter style. 2022 is a bigger wine without sacrificing any delicacy.
I am working on putting together a similar tasting, hopefully this fall somewhere between Boston and New York. If you have any extra bottles or can steer me towards any sources, I would be grateful.

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The 2013 and 2015 are especially awesome. They were from the old, diseased “Ahlgren” plot. Fantastic if you can find them. His Sceales Vinyard Grenache is also amazing.

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Going to the SCM Grand tasting event this month on the 29th? Should be plenty of options to taste

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Thanks.
Just got back from Northern California. Can’t get back again that soon. If I had known about the tasting, I would have planned for it and I definitely will for next year.

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Chambers Street just offered several vintages of Arnot Robert’s Fellom Ranch Cab ( not Bates but Santa Cruz)

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Thanks, I’m going to look.

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I’ll make sure to keep my eye out for any under the radar Bates cabs for you at the event and report back. I can also provide Cabs from where I work if you are ever doing SCM tasting events. Feel free to shoot me a DM!