2019 Hidden Ridge Impassible Mountain Reserve

Polished and exceptionally balanced, the 2019 Cabernet Sauvignon Impassable Mountain is entirely produced from Cabernet Sauvignon. It was raised in 75% new French oak for 18 months and is a blend of the top barrel selections from the Immortal Estate Vineyard. Taking on a nuanced and refined approach, with a cascading perfume of lavender oil, pine needles, sage, cassis, tobacco, and blackberry liqueur, it opens immediately with outstanding purity of fruit on the palate, which is full-bodied, plush, and silky in texture. It has energetic and seamless acidity and a distilled core of red and black fruits that lasts for ages. It is showing beautifully already, but it will undoubtedly reap the rewards of cellar time and last over the coming 2-3 decades. Having tasted the 2016 at the vineyard, this one comes very close to matching that in quality and complexity and may well prove to do so with another year. It’s truly exceptional. Immortal is a project of Tim Martin of Tusk in Napa, Randy Nichols, and winemaker Timothy Milos. Tim was drawn to the diversity of Sonoma and wanted to make a truly luxury wine on the other side of the mountain. Immortal is a terraced vineyard site planted on 55-degree slopes high in the Mayacamas Mountains. The estate was officially rebranded in 2014. I visited the vineyard with Tim Martin this May and found it to be truly one of the more unique sites I’ve seen, tucked into incredibly rugged and mountainous terrain. The wines are opulent, luxurious, and highly finessed while retaining the hallmark piney herbaceousness that the other side of the mountain has to offer. I would encourage lovers of Napa to explore these wines as a gateway to Sonoma.