Winemaker Notes
The wine is as complex, expansive, and hedonistic as it sounds. The wine is juicy and fruit-driven, with notes of blueberries and cream, chocolate, flint and baking spices. Its silky texture is very alluring, as the wine flows across the palate there is an ever-increasing list of descriptors that come to mind, from bing cherry, black currant and nutmeg, to white flowers, chaparral, and clove.
Blend: 37% Malbec, 36% Cabernet Sauvignon, 23% Petit Sirah, 4% Petit Verdot
Professional Ratings
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
The 2017 Blacktail Proprietary Red Blend MMXVII is a blend of 36% Cabernet Sauvignon, 37% Malbec, 23% Petite Sirah and 4% Petit Verdot. Deep garnet-purple in color, it is a little closed to begin, requiring some swirling to reveal a seducing perfume of lilacs, baked plums, blueberry pie and spice cake with hints of potpourri, unsmoked cigars and chocolate mint. The palate is medium to full-bodied and concentrated, but not in the least heavy, delivering layer upon layer of perfumed black fruits and a velvety texture, finishing fragrant and long, long, long. It is an exercise in polish and poise.
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Jeb Dunnuck
The 2017 Proprietary Blend Blacktail is a terrific red from this challenging vintage, and it has some upside as well. Based on 36% Cabernet Sauvignon, 37% Malbec, 23% Petite Sirah, and the balance Petit Verdot, it offers beautiful purity of fruit as well as notes of violets, spice, and peppery herbs. With good acidity, ripe tannins, and outstanding balance, it’s going to be even better in 2-4 years and evolve for over a decade. Rating: 93+
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.