2016 The Flight Red Blend Napa Valley

Formerly-know as ‘Second Flight’ from Screaming Eagle
JS99 This is the best Flight I have ever had with so much merlot character coming through with black olives, hazelnuts, brown sugar and blackberries, as well as violets. Full-bodied yet linear and very long. Extremely refined and fresh. Needs a few years to come completely together, but already so refined.

AG98 The 2016 The Flight is gorgeous. Dark, brooding and closed in on itself, the 2016 is going to need a number of years to be at its very best, but it is incredibly beguiling today. Plum, black cherry, lavender, blood orange menthol, and a host of more mineral-driven notes punctuate this super-expressive wine. This is a decidedly tannic and powerful edition of The Flight. I can’t wait to see how it ages. Bottled just six weeks before this tasting, the 2016 appears to have a very bright future. Time in the glass brings out some of the softer edges that will almost surely emerge with cellaring. The Flight is built on a core of older Merlot vines from the southeast corner of the estate. It is an absolutely riveting wine from Screaming Eagle.

WA97+ Composed roughly of two-thirds Merlot with 5% Cabernet Franc and the rest Cabernet Sauvignon, the medium to deep colored 2016 The Flight opens with bold, expressive notions of wild blueberries, warm plums and boysenberries with touches of black raspberries, spice cake, violets, dark chocolate and potpourri with a hint of menthol. Full-bodied, rich, spicy and jam-packed with energy, it has beautifully plush tannins texturing the multilayered blue and black fruits, delivering a very long, perfumed finish.