Marietta Cellars
Armé Cabernet Sauvignon 2021
North Coast
Organically farmed and estate grown, the Armé Cabernet Sauvignon is a tribute to the great-great uncle of owner/winemaker Scot Bilbro. Sourced from the rocky hillside terraces of the Angeli Estate in Alexander Valley and the cool, protected McDowell Valley estate, this wine reflects the balance of warm days and cold nights that define these sites. Fresh, dark fruit and earthy savor give the wine a taut, structured core, while its style bridges the richness of modern California with Old World restraint. The dry fly on the label nods to the Bilbro family’s fishing roots and Armé’s enduring legacy.
VINEYARD
The fruit for this wine comes from the Angeli Estate vineyard in Alexander Valley and the McDowell Valley estate. The Cabernet on the Angeli Estate rests on rocky hillside terraces. Foggy mornings along the Russian River burn off to hot afternoons followed by chilly nights. Coupled with deep gravel swales and rocky hills, this vineyard offers the perfect balance between warm days and cool nights. The McDowell Valley estate, situated in a valley surrounded by mountains, benefits from the cold sink that ensures cool nights and preserves acidity and freshness.
WINEMAKING
16 months of aging in neutral barrels.
VINTAGE
2021’s extremely cold and dry winter coupled with a windy spring made for a lighter yielding crop and small berries. These tiny clusters and berries went through the mild growing season with accelerated ripeness and made for a darker more intense wine. Harvest happened a week early across all varietals. Flavors were riper, denser, and showcased more red fruit then other vintages. This was a stellar growing season and the resultant wines are fresh and bright now but are built to age gracefully.
FOOD PAIRING
The Armé Cabernet Sauvignon pairs beautifully with herbed roasts, asparagus, garlicky beans, and all manner of savory foods.
UPC
746751000103
Color
Red
Blend %
84% Cabernet Sauvignon, 10% Merlot, 4% Malbec, 2% Petit Verdot
Appellation
North Coast
Alcohol
14.6%
Suggested Retail Price
$32.99
Reviews
Wine Advocate - October 19, 2023 The 2021 Armé Cabernet Sauvignon has pretty tones of blueberries and black cherries with nuances oflavender, thyme and underbrush. The palate is medium-bodied, chalky andrefreshing, with surprising depth of crunchy fruit and floral sparks across thelong, juicy finish."
Vinous - July 8, 2024 "The 2021 Armé is a tasty Cabernet Sauvignon-based blend from Marietta. Gravel, scorched earth, tobacco, incense, leather and menthol add layers of nuance to a core of dark-toned fruit. This somber, virile red packs plenty of intensity into its mid-weight frame."
Trade Materials
Other Wines by this Producer
Nadi Riesling
Cienega Valley, California
This Dry Riesling comes from a special vineyard in the Cienega Valley appellation inland of Monterey, California. These old, dry farmed, head pruned vines produce a small but concentrated crop. The second oldest Riesling in California, this block was planted in 1964.
Gibson Block Syrah
McDowell Valley, California
Made from the oldest Syrah vines in California, in the heart of the McDowell Valley AVA, this wine reflects the hidden property where it is grown - quiet, obscure and profound. This ancient, dry farmed, mixed block next to the original Gibson Homestead has been producing grapes for over a hundred years. Limited in production due to the unique grape source, this wine is built to enjoy with food.
Game Trail Cabernet Sauvignon
Yorkville Highlands, California
From a high elevation site in the Yorkville Highlands with coastal influence and large diurnal shifts, the Game Trail Cabernet offers an intense, fragrant, savory, and fresh style of Cabernet that speaks of site and demands to be paired with food. This area, with trails worn by mushroom hunters and wild game that travel through the woods, was a refuge for Chris Bilbro, who hunted here and searched for Chanterelles. The mushroom on the label is a tribute to this unique place and its significance.
Angeli Zinfandel
Alexander Valley, California
Marietta Cellars sits at the entrance to a small canyon off Alexander Valley. Known as Angeli Ranch after the family who originally settled there in 1886, the property’s vineyards connect gravel swales from the Russian River to terraced knolls invisible from the valley floor. The extremes of this site create a wine that is powerful but has surprising elegance and clarity.
Christo Red Blend
North Coast, California
Named and styled after Chris Bilbro, affectionately called "Christo" by his great-aunt Marietta, this Rhone varietal blend is gentle but powerful, pleasurable but deep, and refined while raw. An ode to Scot's father and founder of Marietta Cellars, this blend is largely Syrah from the McDowell estate, blended with Petite Sirah from the Angeli Estate and Grenache from the Yorkville Highlands Estate. The pig snout on the label is a reminder of how Chris Bilbro made wild boar sausage and carted his creations around the country to share with chefs and wine lovers alike as he sold Marietta wines.
Román Zinfandel
North Coast, California
Named after cellarmaster Román Cisneros who has worked at Marietta for over 32 years, this Estate Zinfandel is from the Angeli estate vineyard in Alexander Valley and the McDowell Valley estate vineyard. One of the grape varieties that Marietta is famous for, this wine captures the bright, juicy character of Zinfandel, and hearkens to an era before dark, thick and oaky styles of Zinfandel took hold.
