Leonetti Reserve 2018

Professional Ratings

• 99 Decanter
  A blend of 75% Cabernet Sauvignon with equal parts Malbec and Petit Verdot, the wine saw 22 months in new and once-used French oak barrels prior to bottling. A brooding, inky purple, this shows its flamboyant side with charcoal and espresso bean alongside blueberry compote, black liquorice and crème de violette aromatics that all take shape in the glass. One sip and you are struck by its massive core of black and blue fruits. This is a legendary, massive wine that really needs some time in the cellar to tame.
• 99 Vinous

  The 2018 Red Wine Reserve is rich and youthfully imposing in the glass, bursting up with gobs of dark red and black fruits, minty herbal tones and sweet violets. This is soft-textured, nearly juicy in feel, with a tart twang of wild berry fruits that add contrasts, as balsamic nuances and exotic spice add unbelievable depths. This finishes grippy and long, yet unexpectedly fresh, leaving nuances of sour cherry and just a hint of dark chocolate to linger on. The 2018 is absolutely stunning, with two decades or more of positive evolution to look forward to.

• 97 Jeb Dunnuck

  The 2018 Reserve is another magical wine from the genius of Chris Figgins. Based on 75% Cabernet Sauvignon and the balance equal parts Malbec and Petit Verdot, it’s a monster of a wine offering dense, tight aromatics of ripe black fruits, classy oak, graphite, lead pencil, and tobacco. Full-bodied, beautifully balanced, and seamless on the palate, it has a touch more plushness than the straight Cabernet Sauvignon, with a great mid-palate, sweet tannins, and a great, great finish. It’s pure class.

• 96 James Suckling

  Blueberries, blackberries, oyster shell, walnuts, vanilla and cocoa butter on the nose. It’s full-bodied with firm, fine tannins. Intense and concentrated, yet sleek and silky in texture. Spicy and seductive finish. Try from 2022.

• 95 Robert Parker's Wine Advocate

  A blend of 75% Cabernet Sauvignon and 12.5% each Malbec and Petit Verdot, the 2018 Walla Walla Reserve explodes from the glass with a luscious and generous expression, offering up notions of black raspberry, spiced plum and blackberry jus. Full-bodied, this heavyweight champ has a velvety denseness to the mid-palate, with a luscious essence of crème de cassis, resinous purple flowers and chocolate-covered blueberries. The wine continues to evolve with persistence for more than a minute on the long-lingering finish. It's a gorgeous and generous wine that spent 22 months in new and used French oak barrels. If you can get your hands on some of this juice, don't skip the chance. Rating: 95+

• 95 Wine Spectator

  An impressive blend, deeply layered and vibrant, with detailed black cherry, tobacco and baking spice flavors that gather richness and polish toward refined tannins. Cabernet Sauvignon, Malbec and Petit Verdot.