1997 Pride Mountain Claret Napa Valley Reserve

While only microscopic quantities were produced of this wine, It is an immense wine of extraordinary concentration and depth. The compelling 1997 Reserve Claret offers an opaque purple color in addition to a sumptuous bouquet of sweet blackberries, creme de cassis, and minerals, superb richness, exceptional concentration, and huge body. However, it manages to avoid being overbearing or unmanageable. Purity and delineation are also present in this multi-dimensional, prodigious wine. Although an infant in terms of development, it is accessible because of the ripe tannin and spectacularly-concentrated fruit. Anticipated maturity: now-2025. Tel. (707) 963-4949; Fax (707) 963-6039

Full dark ruby. Sappy, bright aromas of blackberry, cassis and violet. Powerfully structured, dense and tightly wrapped. The new oak component contributes to the wine's impressive tannic clout. Still, this wine's superb intensity and persistence suggests that the fruit will remain when the tannins begin to soften.