Pahlmeyer Proprietary Red Blend 2017

This 2017 Proprietary Red Napa Valley is a cellar-worthy wine that will reward patience over the next decade or more. Blackberry, leather and Spanish cedar are revealed at first swirl, complemented by subtle hints of dried sage. Dark and opaque, the concentrated, complex palate brings generous notes of summer cherries, wild blackberries, berry compote and figs, layered with Mexican chocolate and freshly scraped vanilla bean. Evolving in the glass, characteristics of plum, brown sugar and spice slowly emerge before a lengthy finish. The best is yet to come for this wine, as its focused intensity and firm, young tannins will age beautifully into sublime texture and fine, velvety tannins. Blend: 77% Cabernet Sauvignon, 13% Merlot, 10% Cabernet Franc.

94+ Points - Jeb Dunnuck    The 2017 Proprietary Red is mostly Cabernet Sauvignon blended with 13% Merlot and 10% Cabernet Franc, all aged in roughly 90% new French oak. This rich, full-bodied, structured wine has lots of tannin and concentration yet stays beautifully balanced, with ample currants, graphite, truffle, loamy earth, and toasted spice-like aromas and flavours. It’s a terrific 2017 that will benefit from 4-5 years of bottle age and keep for 15-20 years.

94+ Points - Robert Parker's Wine Advocate    The 2017 Pahlmeyer, bottled at the beginning of September, contains no Petit Verdot or Cabernet Franc this year, as that fruit was smoke tainted. Only Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot made the cut this year. Very deep garnet-purple colored, it delivers provocative blueberry preserves, baked plums and black forest cake scents followed by crème de cassis, dark chocolate, cedar chest and pencil lead with a waft of camphor. Medium to full bodied, the palate delivers impressive intensity with earthy layers offering lots of interest to the intense black fruit preserves, framed by firm, grainy tannins, finishing long with loads of energy.