2017 TOR Oakville Proprietary Red

The 2017 Proprietary Red Wine is a blend of two co-ferments, Cabernet Sauvignon/Cabernet Franc from To Kalon and Petit Verdot/Cabernet Sauvignon from Vine Hill Ranch. That approach yielded a stunning, majestic wine of the very highest level. Rich, sumptuous and full-bodied to the core, the 2017 is just sensational. It is also very clearly one of the wines of the vintage.

This Proprietary red is a blend of 40% Cabernet Sauvignon, 35% Cabernet Franc and 25% Petit Verdot. The Cabernet Sauvignon and Petit Verdot from Vine Hill Ranch were co-fermented. Then this co-ferment was blended with the Cabernet Franc early in the season. Deep garnet-purple in color, the 2017 Oakville Proprietary Red Wine comes strutting out of the glass with notions of baked plums, blackcurrant pastilles and wild blueberries plus hints of iron ore, tilled soil, bay leaves and tree bark with a touch of Sichuan pepper. Medium-bodied, the palate is elegant, refreshing and crunchy, with tons of energy and a lovely chewy edge coming through on the finish. 125 cases were made.

A final blend of one-third each of Cabernet Franc (To Kalon), Petit Verdot (Vine Hills Ranch), and Cabernet Sauvignon (Vine Hill Ranch), the 2017 Oakville Proprietary is another deep ruby/plum-colored effort. It has a rich, powerful, opulent style as well as tons of black fruits, licorice, smoked earth, chocolate, and earth. It's one of the more dense, powerful, layered effort in the lineup, and while it's approachable now, it really needs 2-4 years of bottle age and is going to age incredibly well.