2014 Lail Vineyards Blueprint Cabernet Sauvignon – Worth the Wait!
Picture from Lail Vineyards website
The Winery
Picture from Lail Vineyards website of Totem Vineyard in Yountville
Their story began in 1879 when Robin Daniel Lail’s great-granduncle, Gustav Niebaum, pioneered fine winemaking in the Napa Valley when he founded Inglenook Winery. Inglenook was passed down to Robin’s grandfather and then to her father, John Daniel Jr. In 1995, after many years working with other Napa Valley icons (Robert Mondavi, Bill Harlan, etc.), Robin’s dream of wanting to create her own extraordinary wines was launched. She and her daughters, Erin and Shannon, assembled a team of talented individuals and set out on their own by launching Lail Vineyards. Today, the winery has a long-standing tradition of great winemaking. Currently they continue a legacy of perfecting vineyards to make extraordinary wines, including some 100-point wines!
The Wine – “Wine is bottled poetry” – Robert Louis Stevenson
Photo ©Michael Kelly
A nice treat last evening as we pulled from the cellar was, Lail Vineyards Blueprint 2014 Cabernet Sauvignon. The 2014 Cabernet Sauvignon Blueprint, which comes from six vineyards in Napa Valley, is a blend of 90% Cabernet Sauvignon and 10% Petit Verdot. The wine on the eyes was a deep garnet red and purple color and medium heavy viscosity. On the nose, the aromas of boysenberry and black cherry dominate. On the palate, besides the ripe fruit, it opens to reveal mocha, vanilla pipe tobacco and leather. The finish is mouth filling, long and with a refined “upper class” edginess to it. The tannins are present but relatively tamed and smooth. The wine was aged in French oak barrels for 18 months with 55% being new. 1843 cases were produced by Philippe Melka. This vintage came in with 14.9% alcohol. The wine was rated at 92 and 93 points but IMHO should have been 2-3 points higher. This is a “value” at $95!
Photo ©Michael Kelly
The current release is 2022 and is listed at $95/bottle. I could not find a rating for their 2022 but 2021 was rated 94 points by both Parker and Wine Enthusiast and Vinous rated it 97 points.
When they say the sum is greater than parts, this is the wine that exemplifies this saying!
Sláinte,
Michael
https://californiawinesandwineries.com
https://www.lailvineyards.com/