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WINEMAKER NOTES
The 2016 Cabernet Sauvignon is ultra-concentrated with dense black fruit, anise, roasted coffee, ripe blueberries, cedar box and graphite. A fresh and focused wine with creamy texture and a long luscious mouth feel with dusty earth, baking spices, sweet vanilla and fresh fig notes.

WINEMAKING DATA
Following early morning picking, grapes were sorted and cold soaked prior to fermentation. The wine was aged for eighteen months in 48% new oak barrels (62% French, 38% American) and 52% one- to two-year-old French and American oak barrels before bottling. The barrel coopers used included Ermitage, François Frères, Demptos (French & American), Canton (American), Dargaud Jaegle and Taransaud.

VINTAGE NOTES
The 2016 Napa Valley growing season began with a mild winter resulting in early bud break for some blocks at the beginning of March. A normal period of bloom and veraison took place in early May and mid-July, respectively. The 2016 growing season was cooler compared to the previous three vintages, allowing for aromas and flavors to develop slowly in the red varieties yielding classic Cabernet Sauvignon from each of our vineyards.

REVIEWS
94 Points - James Suckling
This has very bright and juicy, brambly dark berries with a wealth of attractive and juicy dark-fruit presence. This has depth, detail and long, layered dark-fruit flavors. Impressively chiseled finish. (Dec. 2018)

93 Points - Lisa Perrotti-Brown, Robert Parker's The Wine Advocate
Deep garnet-purple colored, it sings of crushed blackcurrants, blackberry pie and blueberry compote with suggestions of cigar box, menthol, rose hip tea and baking spices. Medium to full-bodied, the palate is packed with vibrant black fruit laced with plenty of spicy sparks, framed by grainy tannins and oodles of freshness and finishing long with a menthol kick. (Dec. 2018)

93 Points and Editors' Choice - Virginie Boone, Wine Enthusiast
This lovely wine shows exceptional quality and complexity within a bold, expansive package of thick, grippy tannin and layered flavors of blackberry, tobacco and smoked meat. (Sept. 2019)

92 Points - Antonio Galloni, Vinous
The 2016 Cabernet Sauvignon (Napa Valley) is once again a huge overachiever. Plum, black cherry, spice, mocha and new leather are front and center. Pliant and giving, with striking purity of fruit and remarkable balance, the 2016 Cabernet Sauvignon is a winner from Phelps. (Dec. 2018)

91 Points - Wine Spectator
Forward in style, featuring a swath of plum and blackberry preserve flavors, laced with light anise, sweet tobacco and apple wood notes. Keeps a juicy energy throughout, but this is accessible now. Drink now through 2026. -JM (Oct. 2019)

91 Points - Jeb Dunnuck
The 2016 Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley comes from six different estate vineyards and was brought up in a mix of French and American oak. It’s a seamless, pretty, medium-bodied effort that has plenty of complexity in its Bordeaux-like bouquet of cassis, leafy herbs, green tobacco, and violets. Drink it over the coming 15+ years. (Jan. 2019)

94 Points - International Wine Report
The 2016 Joseph Phelps Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon is the finest release of this wine I have come across in quite some time. This instantly impresses as it bursts open with seductive aromas of ripe dark currants and black cherries woven together with sweet baking spices, mocha, sage and hints of dusty minerals. On the palate this is full-bodied and voluptuous, with beautifully polished tannins. It displays outstanding overall depth with layers of beautifully ripe dark fruits and sweet spice flavors resonating through the opulent finish. This is a total success from the team at Joseph Phelps. (April 2019)

Source: https://www.josephphelps.com