Joseph Phelps Insignia (375ML half-bottle) 2007

The 2007 Insignia (a blend of 88% Cabernet Sauvignon, 8% Merlot and 4% Petit Verdot) looks to be one of the greatest wines yet produced at this historic winery. Beautiful aromas of creme de cassis and flowers jump from the glass of this dense purple-colored effort. Sweet oak is present, but it is pushed to the background by the wine’s extravagant wealth of fruit and full-bodied power. This is finesse and flavor authority put into a classic Napa Valley Cabernet with a seamless integration of all its component parts. Already complex and approachable, it should evolve for three decades or more, but who can resist it now? It is a staggering, complex expression of Napa viticulture. Anticipated maturity: now-2030. Another great success for Phelps, the 2007 and 2008 Insignias may be the best back-to-back vintages they have produced since 1995 and 1994. The 2008 has some tannins to resolve whereas the 2007 has already assimilated them.

Firm, intense and concentrated, massive yet well-proportioned, with a dense, focused core of graphite, dried currant, blackberry, black tea, forest floor and blueberry flavors. Full-blown, finishing with rich, layered tannins that beg for cellaring. Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Petit Verdot. Best from 2013 through 2025.

This year's Insignia builds on past success and is as always a sophisticated and exceptionally deep wine. Its extraordinary marriage of layered richness and finesse places it among the year's very best, and, while fit with plenty of young Cabernet tannin, it is even now a wine of real polish that seems to show a little more with each sip. It is a wine for collecting and saving to special occasions, and it will last if well-cellared for a decade or more.

Saturated dark ruby! Ripe but reticent aromas of blackberry, boysenberry, bitter chocolate oak, licorice and mocha are very subtle and complex. Wonderfully pliant and balanced wine, with plush purple fruit and violet flavors displaying a smooth grain and superb depth. Spreads out to saturate the middle palate and builds slowly and inexorably on the aftertaste. This fully ripe, complete wine finishes with stylish tannins and outstanding length. There may still be more fireworks ahead for this beauty.

Aromas of blackberry, leather, lead pencil, and flowers. On the palate this is dense and velvety, with a gorgeous texture. Agile and balanced, this is hard not to drink right now. The finish is long, with notes of coffee and dark fruits.

You have to count this as another great Insignia, dry and complex and ageworthy, although the tannins are fierce now and it may lack just a bit of the glamor of say, the 2004 or 2001. It's certainly a big wine that floods the mouth with blackberry, black current, cassis and new oak flavors. The tannins and acids make it aloof, resistant, tough. It wants time in the cellar. Best after 2013. Production was a hefty 13,500 cases.

Phelps' top red is a blend of cabernet sauvignon (88%), merlot and petit verdot, all grown at estate vineyards. Most of the fruit comes from the southern end of Napa Valley - Suscol, a relatively cool site in South Napa, along with Stags Leap adn Oak Knoll. That cool tone comes across in red currant flavors, in the quiet presence of a substantial wine. It's sleek with dark tanning that feels youthful and austere, hinting at a Christmas spice that predicts what holiday celebrations might be in store tend years down the line.