Winemaker Notes
Blend: 62% Cabernet Sauvignon, 38% Cabernet Franc
Professional Ratings
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Jeb Dunnuck
The 2018 The Ultimate Debate is released only in magnums and is a mix of the single vineyards. The final blend is 62% Cabernet Franc from the Sleeping Lady, To Kalon, and Stagecoach vineyards, and 38% Cabernet Sauvignon from the Artalade, Sacrashe, and Denali vineyards. 2018 was a great vintage for Cabernet Franc, and this is a stunner, revealing a dense purple hue as well as a gorgeous nose of crème de cassis, mulberries, blueberries, earthy spring flowers, chocolate, bouquet garni, and sandalwood. Full-bodied and concentrated on the palate, it has an elegant, seamless texture, the purity and finesse that's the hallmark of the vintage, ripe yet certainly present tannins, and a great finish. It's another thrilling wine from this label that can be drunk today or cellared for 25-30 years.
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
The 2018 The Ultimate is only available in magnums. It is a barrel-select blend encompassing all The Debate’s single vineyards of Cabernet Sauvignon and Cabernet Franc. This year, 62% of the blend is Cabernet Franc, coming from Sleeping Lady, Beckstoffer To Kalon and Stagecoach vineyards. The 38% Cabernet Sauvignon comes from Artalade, Sacrache and Denali vineyards. Very deep purple-black, it needs a fair bit of swirling and coaxing to begin to unlock fragrant scents of ripe black and red currants, black raspberries, chocolate-covered cherries and mulberries with suggestions of pencil lead, cedar chest, black olives and lavender with a waft of fallen leaves. Medium to full-bodied, the palate is jam-packed with crunchy red and black berry flavors, supported by firm, grainy tannins and seamless freshness, finishing long and earthy. It will need a good 5-7 years in bottle to really begin to strut its stuff and should cellar for a further 30+ years.
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Wine Spectator
Polished, streamlined version, with alluring cassis and raspberry flavors gliding through and infused with lightly singed vanilla and alder notes. Tobacco hint curls around the finish. Cabernet Sauvignon and Cabernet Franc. Best from 2023 through 2034.
Wines, like people, are a reflection of their origin and evolution. The Debate are Napa Valley wines crafted by respected winemaker Jean Hoefliger (Lynch-Bages, Newton Vineyard, Alpha Omega, AXR, Harbison and many others). The Debate focuses on the unique terroirs of single vineyard sites for Cabernet Sauvignon & Cabernet Franc exclusively.
The Debate began in 2010 when two friends brought their unique perspectives together to create thought provoking and delicious wines that extend beyond the sense of taste to the thrill of telling stories and the art of listening. By selecting three different vineyards with three different expressions of Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon and Cabernet Franc, the Debate seeks to point out the diversity of terroir as well as the diversity of people.
We live in an age where less and less time is spent at the dinner table discussing these different points of view. The Debate mission is to bring people together to share a glass of wine to discuss and debate just as our team does. Every vintage of The Debate is wrapped in newspaper with “The Debates” of the vintage. Whether its politics, sports, pop-culture or world events, you have the opportunity to reminisce a time, a place and a vintage in history with the people around you.
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.