Winemaker Notes
Professional Ratings
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James Suckling
Fabulous blackberries, fresh mushrooms, wet concrete and oyster shells. Full-bodied, dense and wonderfully textured. Fantastic mouthfeel. Great finish. Goes on for minutes. Try in 2021.
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Vinous
The 2014 Bettina has reached its tenth birthday in style. Rich and explosive in the glass, the 2014 possesses terrific depth from start to finish. Inky dark-toned fruit, bittersweet chocolate, mocha, lavender, rose petal and spice box all saturate the palate. This is an impressive showing.
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
The 2014 Proprietary Bettina has a much more saturated purple than the DB4 (I believe all of this comes from purchased fruit from David Abreu’s various vineyards in Napa). Loads of forest floor and graphite, blackberry and blueberry fruit dominate the complex set of aromatics. Like most 2014s, there is a softness and lushness, a full-bodied opulence and a long, long finish. This is impressive and beautifully approachable already, but promises to keep for 12-15 more years.
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.