Pulido Walker Estate Cabernet Sauvignon Mt. Veeder 2019

By now the esteemed wines of Pulido~Walker need no introduction. With none other than the uber-talented winemaker Thomas Rivers Brown at the reins since the inaugural 2010 vintage, Mark Pulido and Donna Walker have fostered a devoted following with exceptional wines released year after year. Successive vintages were crafted with fruit sourced from two widely lauded locales: the Melanson Vineyard on Pritchard Hill and the Panek Vineyard in Saint Helena. But now at long last, and with bated breath, we'd like to announce their very first, much-anticipated Cabernet Sauvignon from the Pulido~Walker Estate on Mt. Veeder! 

Almost a decade has passed since Pulido~Walker acquired 100 stunning acres, nestled on Mt. Veeder, at the southern end of the Mayacamas Mountains with views eastward across the breadth of the Napa Valley. During that time, Thomas and his team meticulously gathered soil and microclimate data before even beginning to put just one single rootstock in the ground. The result of all this extensive research is a mere 13 acres of vines further subdivided into 18 micro-blocks planted to four different clones of Cabernet Sauvignon. Each unique site and clone contribute, like pieces of a jigsaw puzzle, to the complexity, structure, and powerful richness of the final estate blend of 100% Cabernet Sauvignon.

"A bigger, richer, more structured wine, the 2019 Cabernet Sauvignon Mt. Veeder Estate Vineyard has brilliant black fruits, tobacco, iron, and subtle smoke-like nuances in a full-bodied, concentrated, layered package. This is pure Mountain Cabernet genius, and while it's far from unapproachable today, it will benefit from 3-5 years of bottle age. It's up with the crème de la crème of the vintage and should be snatched up by readers." - 99 points, Jeb Dunnuck