Winemaker Notes
Blend: 71% Cabernet Sauvignon, 14% Cabernet Franc, 11% Petit Verdot, 4% Merlot
Professional Ratings
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
This was made from 100% Pritchard Hill fruit this year, although not all of it was estate fruit. Blended of 71% Cabernet Sauvignon, 14% Cabernet Franc, 11% Petit Verdot and 4% Merlot, the 2010 Proprietary Red is deep garnet-purple colored and sings of plums preserves, blueberry coulis, lilacs, roses and black tea with pencil shavings and unsmoked tobacco nuances. Medium to full-bodied with a very firm foundation of ripe, grainy tannins, the palate has amazing freshness and energy, finishing on a lingering earthy note.
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Wine Spectator
An enticing, graceful style, this achieves a deft balance and refined dark berry, cedar and black licorice notes that linger on the finish as the tannins gain traction and grip.
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.