Our Newest “Icon Wine” Is a Napa Valley Insider’s Find:
Swanson Family Alexis Cabernet Sauvignon 2007
$95 per bottle.* Available in limited quantities and while supplies last.
I absolutely love offering our Fleming's guests the opportunity to try an amazing wine at a very enticing price. We've previously offered Phelps Insignia, Caymus Cabernet and Silver Oak Alexander Valley Cabernet, all at exclusive Fleming's pricing. It's a benefit of our very close relationships with the top winemakers in California. (Okay, I also get to spend some time in Napa Valley!) We call it our Icon Wine program and it's only available for very special wines. So I'm extremely excited to offer our latest: the 2007 Swanson Family "Alexis" Cabernet Sauvignon.
I'm always on a search for the Icon Wine "Holy Grail." On a recent trip to Napa, people who make their living creating, tasting and selling wine kept leading me to the same doorstep — Swanson Vineyards — and to a particular wine they make called Alexis Cabernet. I'm so glad they did. This is very much an "insiders" wine, a boutique-style blend created in the center of the region's preeminent AVA, Oakville.
It's no secret that 2007 was truly a classic Napa Cabernet vintage. Many think the finest since 2001. This bewitchingly original Swanson Alexis stands toe-to-toe with Napa Valley's blockbuster Cabernets. It is characterized by graphite and cassis notes and a definite Oakville taste profile of dark cherries and tobacco leaf. Made from only the finest of Swanson's celebrated Cabernet Sauvignon vineyards, Alexis is a wine lover's wonderland: complex, aromatically beguiling and powerfully elegant. It's a must try.
The Swanson Family Vineyards story is an interesting one. It began in the summer of 1985, when Elizabeth and Clarke Swanson, Jr. of Swanson TV Dinner fame purchased a 100-acre property smack dab in the heart of Napa Valley, surrounded by vineyard estates like Opus One, Dominus and Harlan Estate.
The family showed their seriousness when they hired André Tchellistcheff, deemed the "dean of American winemakers" by none other than Robert Mondavi. In the bold business style long associated with the Swanson name, they planted Merlot in the heart of Cabernet Sauvignon country. It was an immediate success. Soon they selected the best lots and created a blend named for their daughter, Alexis, who is now grown up and the creative director for the winery.
Some 25 years later, Swanson Vineyards now operates under the helm of elite winemaker Chris Phelps. Chris is an expert in both the Bordeaux and Napa styles, honed at the venerable Château Petrus in Bordeaux, then at Dominus, under the tutelage of Christian Mouiex, and later still at Caymus, with Chuck Wagner. In other words, he knows his stuff. He has evolved the wine from a primarily Merlot based blend to one now with a majority of Cabernet Sauvignon.
I can't wait for you to try this elegant 2007 Swanson Alexis Cabernet. Starting February 6, we're offering this wine at the very special price of $95 per bottle.* But don't wait too long. We will continue this exciting offer until March 31st, or until our supplies run out. Cheers!
* Excluding tax and gratuity. The Icon Wine program is not available at Fleming's locations in PA and UT.