Winemaker Notes
Professional Ratings
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James Suckling
I really love this now. Blueberry and dark chocolate and minerals on the nose. Full and super fine with wonderfully silky tannins with a long finish. Intense fruit. Meat undertones as well.
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
The 2008 Melbury flows across the palate with layers of dark sensual fruit, spices, licorice, leather and tobacco. Clean veins of minerality frame the fruit beautifully through to the finish. Floral notes add an element of brightness on the close. Anticipated maturity: 2013-2023.
Range: 91-93 Points -
Wine Spectator
Very rich and refined, chunky and tannic, this full-bodied red offers a pretty core of ripe wild berry and black cherry flavors, with cedar, tobacco, sage and dried currant notes, firming and turning chewy. Best from 2013 through 2024.
Undoubtedly proving its merit over and over, Napa Valley is a now a leading force in the world of prestigious red wine regions. Though Cabernet Sauvignon dominates Napa Valley, other red varieties certainly thrive here. Important but often overlooked include Merlot and other Bordeaux varieties well-regarded on their own as well as for their blending capacities. Very old vine Zinfandel represents an important historical stronghold for the region and Pinot noir is produced in the cooler southern parts, close to the San Pablo Bay.
Perfectly situated running north to south, the valley acts as a corridor, pulling cool, moist air up from the San Pablo Bay in the evenings during the hot days of the growing season, which leads to even and slow grape ripening. Furthermore the valley claims over 100 soil variations including layers of volcanic, gravel, sand and silt—a combination excellent for world-class red wine production.