Winemaker Notes
Blend: 58% Syrah, 21% Merlot, 20% Cabernet Franc, 1% Cabernet Sauvignon
Professional Ratings
-
Wine Spectator
Supple and polished, with plump blackberry, toasty, mocha and spice flavors that glide on a lingering finish toward silky tannins. Syrah, Merlot, Cabernet Franc and Cabernet Sauvignon. Drink now through 2029.
-
Jeb Dunnuck
The 2017 Alec's Blend is based on 58% Syrah, 21% Merlot, 20% Cabernet Franc, and the rest Cabernet Sauvignon. It's a unique blend with a singular style in its red and black berry fruits, peppery herbs, cured meats, lead pencil, and classy oak-driven aromas and flavors. Nicely textured and medium to full-bodied, with ripe tannins and a fleshy yet balanced profile, it's ideal for drinking over the coming 5-8 years.
-
Wilfred Wong of Wine.com
COMMENTARY: The 2017 Lewis Cellars Alec's Blend is a massive red wine that reaches the finish line leaving others in the dust. TASTING NOTES: This wine offers concentrated aromas and flavors of bold, black fruit and generous oaky notes. Pair it with a thick and juicy, well-marbled ribeye. (Tasted: May 4, 2020, San Francisco, CA)
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.