Search results for: 'plot red'

92 Points! A proprietary red blend of Petite Sirah, Grenache, Syrah, and Zinfandel aged eight months in 31% new oak. Orin Swift has opened a new, lovely tasting lounge in the town of St. Helena, CA and is worth a visit for those coming to the Napa Valley. Dave Phinney, the founder of Orin Swift, calls all the picks and continues working and honing these wines in the cellar. Rich black cherry, toffee, and caramel spices lead to a full-bodied wine with red berry fruit and chocolatey, robust, chewy tannins. The long fruit driven finish offers ample brown spices and toasty cedarwood. - Decanter Magazine

91 Points! Potent and dense, with brooding flavors of blackberry and cherry accented by bitter chocolate, cracked pepper and savory meat tones as this builds tannins on the finish. Grenache, Syrah and Petit Sirah. Best after 2025. - Wine Spectator

99 Points! The 2019 Estate Red is another magical wine from winemaker Sam Kaplan. Based on 82% Cabernet Sauvignon, 6% Cabernet Franc, 6% Petit Verdot, and the rest Merlot and Malbec, all from the estate on Howell Mountain, it offers up a dense purple hue to go with stunningly pure cassis and darker currant fruits, full-bodied richness, ultra-fine tannins, and a complex, nuanced style in its leafy herbs, flowers, scorched earth, and classy oak aromas and flavors. It’s brilliant any way you look at it. Hide bottles for 4-5 years, count yourself lucky, and enjoy over the following three decades. - Jeb Dunnuck

100 Points! A full-bodied, structured red with blackcurrant, violet, dark-chocolate and burnt-orange aromas. Walnut husk, too. Such precision and elegance. Firm, smooth tannins and a long finish. Really complex at the end. A stunning wine from Stags Leap District. Drink from 2023. - JamesSuckling.com

98+ Points! From the estate property around the new winery in Stags Leap, the 2018 Cabernet Sauvignon Estate Moonracer (there are normally small amounts of Merlot and Cabernet Franc in the blend) offers a glorious Napa Cabernet nose of crème de cassis, lead pencil shavings, dried flowers, and chocolate that develops beautifully with time in the glass. It doesn't lose a beat on the palate either and is full-bodied, with a layered, focused texture, building structure, and a great, great finish. It's a serious, age-worthy wine that needs 4-5 years of bottle age yet will evolve like a First Growth from Bordeaux. - Jeb Dunnuck

91 Points! The smart buy in the Ackerman lineup is the suave, polished 2018 Memoir Red Wine. A blend of 74% Cabernet Sauvignon, 7% each Cabernet Franc and Merlot, and 6% each Malbec and Petit Verdot, it seamlessly marries cedary oak notes with cassis and dark chocolate flavors. Medium to full-bodied and less opulent and weighty than many of its Napa counterparts, it's still velvety-plush but also marked by ample freshness and length. - Joe Czerwinski, robertparker.com

91 Points! The 2022 Papillon Red Wine is a blend of 71% Cabernet Sauvignon, 7% each Malbec and Syrah, 6% Cabernet Franc, 5% Petit Verdot and 4% Merlot. It also includes a bit more than 5% of 2021 vintage wine, so it is labeled as Napa County, rather than Napa Valley. All the bookkeeping aside, it offers plenty of ripe cherries and a faint herbal streak on the nose, a full-bodied, silky-textured palate and a welcome bit of cedar (it spent 13 months in 40% new oak) on the charming, supple finish. - Joe Czerwinski, robertparker.com

98 Points! A 60-40 blend of Cabernet Franc and Merlot, the 2021 Proprietary Red Wine Sugarloaf Mountain exudes sensual aromas of mocha and black cherries underscored by gentle hints of tobacco and sage. Full-bodied, plush and supple, with a long, softly dusty finish, this makes a compelling argument for non-Cabernet Sauvignon wines in Napa. - Joe Czerwinski, robertparker.com

97+ Points! Gorgeous blue fruits, mountain scrub brush, sage, espresso, black raspberry, and violet notes all emerge from the 2021 Proprietary Red Sugarloaf Mountain Vineyard, a blend of Cabernet Franc and Merlot that's full-bodied and has terrific overall balance, building, fine-grained tannins, and a good spine of acidity that carries through the finish. This is another gorgeous wine in the lineup that shines for its complexity, balance, and depth. - Jeb Dunnuck

99 Points! Fabulous aromas of blueberries, blackcurrants, sage and mint. Lead pencil and graphite, too. Full body and ultra-fine tannins that are slowly transformed to ripe and beautiful fruit. Super polished and textured. Great finish. - JamesSuckling.com

97 Points! The 2021 Anza Especial was produced with the idea to obtain a wine with aging potential while keeping the freshness and drinkability from early on. It was produced with the fruit from three old vines—Tempranillo, Graciano, Garnacha and Viura—fermented by plot in stainless steel and matured in used 500-liter oak barrels. It encapsulates the perfume, finesse and elegance that is present in the whole portfolio here with the aid of a very balanced 2021 vintage. It has notes of violets, red and black berry fruit, wild herbs and subtle spices. The palate has symmetry, elegance and precision, the tannins are extremely fine-bonded, and the flavors pure and precise and stay in your mouth for a long time after you swallow. Great juice. It should age effortlessly. 2,800 bottles produced. - Luis Gutierrez, robertparker.com

98 Points! A new red in the "Fincas" single-vineyard range, the 2019 Finca Las Cerrilladas was produced with grapes from Gualtallary and is an intense and aromatic red with the wild profile from Gualtallary. It has 14.5% alcohol and is ripe and juicy, with very good acidity and freshness. It seems to me like there's more consistency in Gualtallary than in Altamira. They have 25 to 30 plots on the property, different soils and exposures, different ways of pruning, too; they deconstruct the property, vinifying everything separately, and then they build the wine through blending, like they do for all the Finca wines. Like the rest of their bottlings, they only use concrete and indigenous yeasts for the fermentation and aging of the wine, but here they use less full clusters, perhaps between 30% to 50%. There's a different tactile sensation from Altamira, and this is firmer, with more severe tannins. Here, the challenge is to avoid over-ripeness, and they have managed nicely. - Luis Gutierrez, robertparker.com

99 Points! A blend of 92% Cabernet Sauvignon, 5% Cabernet Franc, and 3% Petit Verdot, the 2005 Dominus is deep garnet in color, with a touch of brick. It needs a lot of shaking to release notes of baked blackcurrants, fruitcake, and blueberry compote, plus hints of baking chocolate, licorice, dried mint, and pencil lead, plus a waft of wood smoke. The concentrated, hedonically styled, full-bodied palate is jam-packed with layers of black and blue fruit preserves, framed by wonderfully ripe, grainy tannins and well-integrated acidity, finishing very long, profound, and shimmery. - Lisa Perrotti-Brown MW

98 Points! This blend of 92% Cabernet Sauvignon, 5% Cabernet Franc and 3% Petit Verdot (note that rarely is any Merlot utilized at the historic Napanook Estate in Yountville). The alcohol, by California standards, is a relatively modest 14.1%. Blending the best of French savoir faire with the brilliant fruit purity and ripeness of Napa Valley, Moueix has turned in another tour de force that seems far superior today than it did when it was first released. This is one of the vintage’s greatest wines. Dense purple and youthful, with a glorious nose of earth, blackcurrants, sweet black cherries and incense, the oak is pushed way in the background, as it is in all of the Moueix wines, and the result is a wine of terroir, of great originality and authenticity. This full-bodied classic from Dominus can be drunk now, but really won’t hit its prime for another 4-5 years and last at least another two decades or more. - Robert Parker, robertparker.com

98 Points! Perfumed aromas of subtle currants, roses, lavender and sage, following through to a medium body with super-fine tannins that caress the palate and leave it fresh and inspired. A gorgeous and graceful 2022. Drinkable now, but better in 2028. - JamesSuckling.com

98 Points, Dunnuck's #1 Cabernet Value of 2019! A blend put together by Bevan from the single vineyards, the Ontogeny cuvée is year-in, year-out one of the greatest values in Cabernet Sauvignon. His 2019 Ontogeny is no exception, revealing a dense purple hue as well as rock star notes of crème de cassis, violets, tobacco leaf, and chocolate. It’s a big, classic Bevan wine and has remarkable purity, silky, polished tannins, and not a hard edge to be found. Don’t miss it! - Jeb Dunnuck

97 Points! Opaque violet color. A highly perfumed and finely detailed bouquet evokes fresh red and blue fruits, exotic spices, vanilla, smoked meat and candied flowers, along with smoky mineral and botanical herb notes that build steadily with air. Stains the palate with vibrant black raspberry, cherry preserve, boysenberry, licorice and violet pastille flavors that convey a suave blend of depth and elegance. Fine-grained, polished tannins frame a strikingly long, finely detailed finish that strongly echoes the floral and mineral notes. All de-stemmed fruit; fermented in large, new oak casks and then raised in used barriques. - Vinous Media

98+ Points! From more than 100-year-old vines, the 2023 Ürziger Würzgarten In der Kranklei Riesling Auslese Alte Reben (Gold Capsule) is from a 2.2-hectare plot in the south-facing, terraced cru on red slate. Deep, clear and pure on the fragrant yet intense and refreshing nose that shows lemongrass, ginger and herbal as well as saline slate aromas. Very generous and lush yet also refined and filigreed on the palate, this is a savory and stimulating saline Auslese with fine, crystalline acidity and candied lemon and grapefruit aromas on the long finish. There are 140 grams per liter of residual sugar, which do not taste extraordinarily sweet but round and generous. The grapes were picked in early October with 15% of botrytis. 8% stated alcohol. Natural cork. Tasted at the domaine from AP 15 24 in January 2025. - Stephan Reinhardt, robertparker.com

97 Points! A mixture of black and blue fruit, very perfumed and elegant. Cherries, plums and blueberries with a peppery undertone. Crushed violets, too. Bone-dry on the palate with abundant, silky tannins and a juicy, lengthy finish. Drinkable now, but better from 2026. - JamesSuckling.com

97 Points! The 2021 Malbec Nicasia Vineyard originates from a small plot nestled within Paraje Altamira, Uco Valley. It was aged up to 16 months in concrete vats and foudres and boasts a deep purple color. The complex nose unveils layers of crushed plums, blueberries, herbs, curry, lavender and graphite. Initially dry and plush, the palate transitions into a taut, chalky, overwhelming, and juicy texture, as if embodying structure and suppleness. This unique and flavorful Malbec offers a high-pitched intensity of flavor that lingers, showcasing a prolonged focus on the fruit. - Joaquin Hidalgo, Vinous Media

97 Points! The nose of this very beautiful Corton-Charlemagne transports me to an Alpine meadow, when all the wild flowers are blossoming. I love the restrained, citrusy richness that is effortlessly interwoven with the stony minerality on the medium- to full-bodied palate of this graceful, yet highly-structured wine. Still quite tight at the very salty finish, but so much to give. From a 3.65 hectare plot at the very top of the hill of Corton, directly below the forest with a yellow mark soil. From organically grown grapes. Drinkable now, but best from 2025. - JamesSuckling.com

97 Points! Beau-Sejour Becot is a dense, powerful wine. A rush of black cherry, plum, chocolate, new leather, licorice, spice and sweet oak builds as this towering, vertically explosive Saint-Émilion opens in the glass. This is an especially broad, expansive Saint-Émilion, much of that attributable to the clay in these soils. The 2020 is magnificent in its intensity and overall volume. Superb. - Antonio Galloni, Vinous Media Learn More

97 Points! The 2019 Prado Enea Gran Reserva is their more traditional Rioja, a blend of Tempranillo, Garnacha, Mazuelo and Graciano, mostly from Rioja Alta (Sajazarra, Cellorigo and Fonzaleche) at 550 to 700 meters in altitude, but the Garnacha is from different plots in the zone of Tudelilla at a high altitude. They didn't produce Prado Enea in 2017 or 2018, so this is the follow-up of the superb 2016. The bunches were harvested into 200-kilogram boxes, destemmed, put through optical sorting and fermented in small oak casks with indigenous yeasts. The élevage in barrel was extended to 36 months. The nose is phenomenal, keeping the essence of Muga with a touch of Garnacha perfume; it's still young and undeveloped for its age, not yet tertiary. The wine is full-bodied but fine-boned and has 14.7% alcohol, a pH of 3.46 and 5.81 grams per liter acidity. Still young, the wine has power and elegance and very good aging potential. 119,000 bottles produced. It was bottled in January 2023. The next vintages will be 2021 and 2022, and after that perhaps 2025, but certainly no 2023 or 2024 wine. - Luis Gutierrez, robertparker.com

PLEASE BE AWARE, THIS IS A PRE-ARRIVAL WINE - YOU WILL NOT BE CHARGED SHIPPING FEES UNTIL THE WINE(S) ARRIVE

94 Points! Lovely finesse with good depth of fruit. Tobacco, paprika, roasted spices and sweet berries. Fine-grained and dusty tannins unwind nicely on the medium- to full-bodied palate. - JamesSuckling.com

94 Points! Rocking blackcurrants, leafy tobacco, chocolate, and smoky nuances all emerge from the 2022 Le Marquis De Calon Ségur, one of the biggest, ripest, sexiest second wines in the vintage. It's full-bodied and has a round, opulent mouthfeel, sweet tannins, and a great finish. This might truly shock you with a decade of bottle age. - Jeb Dunnuck