2022 Pahlmeyer Red Blend Napa Valley

WSI96 DEC95 Winemaker Katie Vogt knocked it out of the park with the 2022 Pahlmeyer Red Wine. It stands right alongside the 2021—an incredible achievement given the heat challenges of the vintage. Yet, this wine delivers depth, structure, and power. Most of the fruit comes from the Upper Range Vineyard above Rutherford, farmed by the Bettinelli family. Katie Vogt described the incoming grapes as looking “like caviar”—perfect. On the nose, fragrant wild sage and thyme intertwine with rose petals, black cherry, and blackberry, all carrying onto the full-bodied palate. Hefty tannins are velvety, framed by a vibrant core of juicy blood orange acidity. The finish is long, layered with toasted baking spices and scorched herb character. This Cabernet and Merlot blend includes Malbec, Petit Verdot, and Cabernet Franc. Aged for 15 months in 90% new French oak, using heavy-toast Taransaud and Darnajou barrels. Hillside sources include Waters, Stagecoach, and Vangone.
Estate Notes: The 2022 Proprietary Red is an expansive and energetic expression of Napa Valley mountain terroir — rich with lifted aromatics and finely structured tannins. The wine opens with savory notes of green and black peppercorn, tobacco leaf, and forest floor, layered over a core of macerated cherry, blackberry, and plum. As the wine evolves in the glass, a dynamic streak of black licorice, chai spice, and cocoa emerges across the mid-palate, balanced by mouthwatering acidity and a long, generous finish. The tannins are already beautifully integrated, lending a velvet texture through the mid-palate. This wine is a compelling reflection of site, vintage, and thoughtful farming — beautiful upon release with the structure to evolve over the next 10–12 years.