Reviews
- James Suckling -
- Wine Spectator -
- Jeb Dunnuck -
Technical Details
- 63% Cabernet Sauvignon, 35% Cabernet Franc, and 2% Petite Verdot
- Nile Zacherle
- US
- California
- North Coast
- Napa Valley
- 35% new French oak and 65% 2 nd use French oak
- 14.9%
- 2830
David Arthur Proprietary Red Napa Valley 2018
31% OFF RETAIL!
David Arthur has become known as a darling of Napa cab production – with their single-varietal bottles going for $125-$250 a pop, making this cab-based Bordeaux blend for under $40 when you buy a case a truly stellar deal to write home about! The fact that it hails from Pritchard Hill (which Wine Spectator has dubbed "the Rodeo Drive of Napa Valley”) only sweetens the deal. This is a wine born of pure passion, and because of that, it offers tremendous value.
David Arthur Vineyards began in 1985 by brothers David and Bob Long, after David sat down for a glass of wine with their father and learned their dad had purchased land in Napa Valley in the late ‘50s. David moved to Napa in 1977 to soak up all he could about the wine industry, taking internships at Chappellet, Joseph Phelps, and Schramsberg. He cleared his father’s land in the late ‘70s, planted his first grapes in ‘80, and harvested the estate’s first vintage of chardonnay in ‘85.
In the 40-plus years since, the estate has created a name for itself as a powerhouse producer of Napa-famous varieties like chardonnay and cabernet, as well as benchmarks for California Tuscan and Bordeaux-style blends, a-la this cabernet sauvignon-merlot-petit verdot cuvée. The mountain-grown wine takes on a concentrated elegance along with a taut acidity that showcases the thoughtful measures taken in harvesting, vinifying, and bottling at this facility. 2018 is known as an epically excellent growing year for Napa Valley, and this blend experiences 20 months of aging in French oak to integrate the flavor profile and round out the tannins to something sensuously smooth.
A potpourri of fruit and spice flavors come together with crushed raspberry, red currant, and black plum taking the lead, plus anise, cinnamon, pepper, and all-spice adding a zippy and warm undercurrent. Accents of wet rocks, cherry cola, molasses bread, and creme de cassis carry the lengthy, structured finish through to the end with fine tannins and a gorgeous complexity. An amazing wine for an even more unbelievable price!
PAIRING IDEAS: Add some more layers of fruitiness, spice, and well-balanced warmth to this wine with a rich chicken mole, served with arroz (rice).