2017 Gearhead Cabernet Sauvignon

Region: Alamo < California  Grapes: Cabernet Sauvignon Vineyard/Cellar Stats: Organic farming on this plot of old 500 vines in an Alamo, CA backyard; foot tread, whole-cluster fermentation with daily punch downs, aged in 60-gallon neutral oak barrels; bottled unfined/unfiltered with no added So2; 46 cases; 12.9% ABV Winemaker: Craig West  WHY IS THIS A UNICORN WINE?  Organic, zero-zero California Cab under $25 bucks that doesn’t suck!  In fact, it’s a throwback to the 70’s and 80’s when Cali Cab wasn’t manhandled to death and its beautiful fruit was allowed to shine. Our buddy Noel of Purity turned us on to his buddy, Craig West, who makes wine at Noel’s Richmond facility for his upstart natural wine label, Gearhead.  Craig was a fisherman and a baker for Acme Bread, but when he met Noel and started helping him with production, he decided that this was his calling and pivoted to wine.  Now he makes tiny lots of wine from organic farming, all foot tread, many with carbonic maceration