Foxen is a small, high-quality producer in Santa Barbara County's Santa Maria Valley. The tiny winery is located in an old barn on Foxen Canyon Road, several miles south of the valley. Foxen owns a small hilltop vineyard called Tinaquoc, planted largely to Cabernet Sauvignon, but most of the winery's offerings are made from purchased fruit from the Santa Maria Mesa, home to Bien Nacido, Cambria, Byron, and Rancho Sisquoc.
Of Central Coast Cabernet Sauvignons, Foxen has always been at or near the top of the list. Producing top quality CabernetSauvignon in the Central Coast region has always been difficult. This varietal seems to be ideally suited to the Napa Valley and warmer regions of Sonoma and Mendocino County. In the Central Coast, it picks up vegetative qualities (herbs, olives, bell pepper) which most Cab drinkers tend to dislike; although these typically Central Coast Cabernets can provide an excellent match for Mexican and Southwestern foods.
Foxen, along with The Gainey Vineyard, was among the first to produce CabernetSauvignons which broke out of the Central Coast profile. In blind tastings, they often pass for North Coast wines. But there's a secret to this success. The vineyard locations (in Santa Barbara County) are usually on the tops of rolling hills, often above the fog. In addition, the best vineyards are hand pruned during the growing season to expose the grape clusters to sunlight. The additional sunshine promotes fruit flavors and reduces or eliminates vegetative flavors. This carefully managed vineyard treatment, coupled with superior winemaking technique, makes these Cabernet Sauvignons fully competitive with typical North Coast products - and a fabulous bargain, besides.
We have seen the best Central Coast Cabernet Sauvignons compete in blind tastings favorably with North Coast products costing twice as much money. The wine we are about to comment on was purchased for $18 at the time of release. Current prices of Gainey Cabernet Sauvignons are about the same.
Tasting the Foxen 1993 Cabernet Sauvignon underscored once again the need to leave California Cabernets alone for five years - my personal rule of thumb. If kept in decent conditions, these wines are sturdy enough to hold on to all their initial assets, while developing complexity and enhanced aroma. The Foxen was tasted alongside a 1983 Jekel Monterey County Cabernet Sauvignon. The Jekel cost about half as much as the Foxen and was not quite as rich or balanced; nevertheless, thoroughly delicious even after 15 years! The comparison suggested that the Foxen might easily have gone another ten years without decline. This has been my experience with the Eberle Paso Robles Cabernet Sauvignons also.
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