2017 Quintessa - Rutherford Red (93 pts) @quintessawinery

2017 Quintessa - Rutherford Red (93 pts) @quintessawinery @postandvine · ℹ️ This wine is 💯estate fruit from the Quintessa estate in Rutherford, Napa Valley, California. The wine is a blend of 92% Cabernet Sauvignon, 4% Merlot, 3% Carmenére, and 1% Petit Verdot. The property has been farmed organically since it started in 1989 and switched to Biodynamic Viticulture in 1996. The 130 acres of vines are broken down into 26 blocks matching the contour of the land. Blocks are broken down even further when harvest decisions are made and vinified separately. Hand-harvested, native yeast fermentation, and an average of 22 days of skin maceration. Aged for 22 months on French oak barrels with 76% new oak. Through blind tasting trials, the wines are blended to form one estate wine· 👁 Deep ruby color· 👃 Medium+ intensity on the nose. Aromas of ripe blackberry, black cherry, oak, smoke, cedar, spearmint, lavender, thyme, dark chocolate, vanilla, and clove· 👄 The wine is dry, medium+ acidity, high grippy ripe tannins, high alcohol (14.5%), and full body. A medium+ length finish of blackberry, cocoa powder, and baking spices· 🔔 This wine was tasted with the winemaker, Rebekah Wineburg, during an Instagram Live session. The 2017 vintage is quite good now, but with additional cellaring, it will improve. The oak is a bit more obvious than the 2016 at the moment, potentially due to a slightly higher percentage of new oak, differences in fruit concentration of the vintage, or simply an extra year in bottle. Regardless this will integrate with time. Extremely well made and built to last, if you can wait your patience will be rewarded· 💰 $200· #vin #lovewine #🍷 #wineterroir #wine #quintessa #rutherford #napavalley #napawine #cabernetsauvignon #napa