2013 Sloan Proprietary Red
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Tasting notes
The prodigious 2013 Proprietary Red is a perfect, magical wine that brings to mind a great vintage of Chateau Latour with its massive, backward style. Dense plum/purple-colored, with powerful notes of crushed rocks, unsmoked tobacco, lead pencil, and blackcurrants, it is a magically opulent, pure wine that has a stacked mid-palate as well as flawless balance, giving it a rare mix of both power and elegance. The finish lasts for nearly a minute, and despite being relatively approachable today, it’s going to benefit from 4-5 years of bottle age and cruise in cool cellars for 25-30 years.
Critic scores
Average Score
Lisa Perrotti-Brown MW, Wine Advocate
Jeff Leve, The Wine Cellar Insider
More reviews and scores
The 2013 Proprietary Red displays a deep garnet-purple color. Wow—it emits the most gorgeous perfume of rose hip tea, violets, sandalwood and fragrant earth over a cassis and blackberry pie core with touches of mocha, cigar box, menthol and garrigue plus a waft of star anise. The powerful, full-bodied palate delivers a wall of exotic spice-accented black fruit preserves with a rock-solid frame of grainy tannins and wonderful freshness, finishing very long and layered. This needs time but is lookin’ glorious.
A huge, backward wine, the 2013 Sloan is deep, powerful and explosive, with huge dark fruit and tons of torrefaction, licorice and menthol notes that add gravitas. Readers will have to be patient with the 2013. All the pedigree of this great vintage is evident, but the tannins need time to soften. At times, the 2013 reminds me of the 2001.
About the producer
Sloan’s 13-acre estate vineyard, composed of mineral-rich, fractured volcanic rock and sandy loam, is located high in the eastern hills of Rutherford. Their inaugural vintage was 2000 and since it has grown a tremendous cult following for those lucky enough to get their hands on a few bottles.