Born at the Ashes & Diamonds estate, this blend serves as a testament to Khaledi’s vision of reviving the restrained, taut style of a bygone wine era. The Grand Vin is an exercise in refinement balanced by terroir. There’s no mistaking this wine came from the Napa Valley, and yet it pushes the boundaries of what the Napa Valley can be by pursuing purity of site to its end.”

Only 780 cases made.

Ashes & Diamonds’ Grand Vin is a wine of finesse and elegance that maintains fresh red and blue fruit flavors while exalting secondary characteristics of spice and herbal tones. The blend of Merlot and Cabernet Franc comes from 30-year-old vines grown in gravelly clay loam at Aahes & Diamonds Vineyard in the Oak Knoll District of Napa Valley.The Grand Vin is a blend of Merlot and Cabernet Franc, which comes from 30-year-old vines grown in gravelly clay loam at Ashes & Diamonds Vineyard in the Oak Knoll District of Napa Valley. It begins with striking aromatics of fresh blackberries, cherries, tobacco, crushed stones, fresh herbs, graphite and spring florals all soaring from the glass. On the palate this is beautifully refined, with a medium body and a gorgeous silky mouthfeel, framed by fine-grained tannins. It displays wonderful definition, clarity and balance, with lovely acidity at its core, as well as striking minerality that continues to persist through the silky finish. Elegant and classy, this is an absolutely fantastic wine which is already showing tons of appeal, yet should also age gracefully.

A&D Vineyard is located at the Ashes & Diamonds estate in the Oak Knoll District of Napa Valley. Its alluvial soils derive from volcanic and marine sediments washed down from the Mayacamas Mountains into gravelly clay loam. Oak Knoll’s lingering morning fog and afternoon sea breezes support a moderate growing season favoring temperance over heat spikes.

Planted in 1986 to Clone 214 from Caldwell Nursery in the Cabernet Franc block, and Joseph Phelps and Robert Mondavi field selections for the Merlot block, the vineyard is farmed organically with minimal irrigation save for the driest of summer days.