Continuum launches 2014 vintage in Hong Kong

Napa’s premium winery Continuum has unveiled its 2014 vintage in Hong Kong – the first terroir-focused vintage since the 2008, according to Carissa Mondavi, speaking to dbHK.

The 2008 vintage was the first wine made with grapes sourced predominantly from Continuum’s own vineyards in Pritchard Hill instead of the neighbouring To Kalon vineyard. Since the 2012 vintage, its wines are made entirely out of estate grapes.

The 2014 vintage, made from 65% Cabernet Sauvignon, 15% Cabernet Franc, 15% Petit Verdot and 5% Merlot, was bottled for the first time with labels clearly identifying its vineyard as ‘Sage Mountain Vineyard,’ a move, according to Carissa, that symbolises their full understanding and grasp of the terroir.

“2014 vintage is the first time as we have been in there (Pritchard Hill) since 2008 and every year we learn a bit more about our terroir. We understand the influences the environment has on our wine, there’s a lot of sage. It’s growing everywhere.

“We are sitting on pure volcanic soil and so the kind of vegetation we have around is hardy and drought-tolerant. The road you take to get to our winery is called Sage Canyon Road for a reason. It’s because of our understanding of our terroir that we named our vineyard Sage Mountain Vineyard. This is the first time it appeared on our label,” explained Carissa Mondavi, granddaughter of Robert Mondavi, who looks after the winery together with her father Tim Mondavi. 

Although this is the third year California has suffered from drought, its production was the largest yet with 4,000 cases. However, production for 2015 will drop by 50% to 2,000 cases, she revealed. Its Cabernet yield in 2015 was only half a tonne an acre compared its average 1.8 tonnes per acre. Production in general in the Napa Valley for the 2015 vintage was down around 20-30%, she estimated, while in the higher hillside vineyards, the loss was close to 50%.   

“The rain we did have came in spring time. It was a gentle steady growing season. It wasn’t punctuated by any extremes,” Mondavi commented, referring to the climatic conditions in 2014.

In terms of quality, she said it was “spectacular”, thanks to the vineyard site’s lean soil. “The quality is still spectacular. That’s the beauty of having leaner, well-drained soil. There’s a natural stress on the vines. They are more sensitive to these adversities,” she continued.

Perched around 1300 to 1600 feet above sea level, its vineyard site sit well above Napa’s fog line. Its diurnal range during the day is milder compared with sites closer to the foothills. The weather is 5 to 10 degrees cooler during the heat of the day and 5 to 10 degrees warmer in the cool of the night, according to Mondavi, which ultimately “helps to retain vibrancy and delicacy” in the wines.

The wine is available at Links Concept.