2006 Oakville Estate Proprietary Red

The brilliant 2006 Proprietary Red Oakville Estate is a 1,890-case blend of 77% Cabernet Sauvignon, 11% Cabernet Franc, and the rest Merlot, Malbec, and Petit Verdot. Its dense purple color is followed by a sweet nose of charcoal, scorched earth, blackberries, blueberries, cigar tobacco, and cedar. Full-bodied with a sumptuous mouthfeel as well as ripe, noble tannins, this gorgeous red can be drunk now or cellared for two decades or more. Readers will notice new, elegant labels reflecting proprietor Leslie Rudd's holy grail quest to make wines that compete with the finest in the tenderloin of Napa's Cabernet country, the Oakville Corridor. As I stated last year, Rudd has the superstars of viticulture and winemaking consulting, David Abreu and Michel Rolland respectively, working with the talented Bill Vyenielo, the viticultural manager who was formerly at Peter Michael, and new winemakers, Rebekah Wineburg and Pat Sullivan, the brother of Mike Sullivan who did such great things at Hartford Court. Their influence is especially noticeable with the final blends of the 2006 reds and the making of the 2007s. One of Napa Valley's most distinctive, singular offerings is The Edge Hill Mixed Blacks. Made from a 5-acre parcel of extremely old vines in St. Helena, next to the Hayne Vineyard, this field blend was probably planted by Italian immigrants in the late 1800s, with the core component representing nearly 50% Zinfandel, and the rest an assemblage of Grenache, Petite Sirah, Cabernet Sauvignon, Mourvedre, and Carignane. Tel. (707) 944-8577; Fax (707) 944-2823

Good saturated medium ruby. Blueberry, cassis, tar, lead pencil and mint on the nose. Denser, sweeter and more suave than the 2005, with a juicy quality but more pliancy to the flavors of cassis, graphite, minerals, leather, violet and iron. Here the firm tannins are less hard and hit the palate later. In comparison, the young 2005 is much more narrow, and harder on the back end.