2021 Cabernet Sauvignon Backus Vineyard
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Tasting notes
From an estate-owned hillside vineyard just east of the Silverado Trail in Oakville, the 2021 Cabernet Sauvignon Backus Vineyard delivers overt notes of charred oak and pencil shavings against an intense backdrop of black cherries. This blend of 92% Cabernet Sauvignon, 5% Malbec and 3% Petit Verdot is full-bodied and muscular, with a long, mocha-tinged finish. With its masses of ripe tannins, it's a strong, concentrated effort capable of aging three decades.
Critic scores
Average Score
Antonio Galloni, Vinous
Jeb Dunnuck
More reviews and scores
The 2021 Cabernet Sauvignon Backus (92% Cabernet Sauvignon, 5% Malbec, 3% Petit Verdot) is deep purple-hued, with a sensational bouquet of black and blue fruits intermixed with scorched earth, spring flowers, graphite, and lead pencil. A powerful red with a Latour-like stature, a dense mid-palate, massive structure, and a great, great finish, this is one of the all-time greats of this cuvée. It will need a decade of bottle age and be a 50-year wine.
The 2021 Cabernet Sauvignon Backus Vineyard soars from the glass with exotic dark fruit, spice, leather, cedar, tobacco and incense, showing all the signatures of eastern Oakville in its structure and overall poise. There's a bit stronger French oak impact than in some of the other wines, but it all works well. Even so, I think there is quite a bit of untapped potential here.
The 2021 Cabernet Sauvignon Backus Vineyard is more masculine and powerful, with ample black cherry, blueberry, crushed stone, creosote, and gravelly earth notes to go with a tannic, concentrated style on the palate. It's focused, has beautiful mid-palate depth, building tannins, and a great finish. It's not for the early gratification crowd, but it s incredible stuff.
About the producer
California winery Joseph Phelps is best known for its flagship Insignia cuvée, one of the first and finest proprietary red wines in the Napa Valley.