Winemaker Notes
The 2014 FUTO is a natural beauty. Aromatics soar from the glass with intense blackberry, cassis, juniper berry and violets that are brilliantly defined and focused. It is almost as if the palate and aromatic senses are as one. With the inner perfume of the wine influencing the mouthfeel, and the aromatics almost washed in sweet and elegant tannin. All of this momentum in the glass promises a thrilling experience now and long into the future.
Professional Ratings
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James Suckling
The beauty and sincerity of this wine is so mesmerizing. Floral, blueberry and blackberry flavors as well as violets. Medium-to full-bodied, soft and silky. Refined and beautiful. A balanced and ethereal wine. Sneaks up on you. Hard not to drink now.
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
The 2014 Oakville Proprietary Red is 65% Cabernet Sauvignon, 28% Cabernet Franc and 7% Petit Verdot. This is a fabulous effort as well, more sexy and up-front than the 2013 at the moment, with gorgeous blueberry and blackberry fruit intermixed with licorice, graphite and subtle background wood smoke. Opulent and voluptuous, with terrific ripeness, density and a layered mouthfeel, this is a killer wine to drink over the next 25-30 years.
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Vinous
The 2014 Red Wine is a dark, exotic beauty. Rose petal, white truffle, pomegranate, mocha and blood orange open in the bouquet. Tremendously deep and pliant, the 2014 has reached its tenth birthday in style. If anything, it could probably use another year or two in bottle to help soften the tannins. This is an impressive effort, to say the least.
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.