Joseph Phelps Vineyards
Established in 1972 by Joe Phelps, a former construction magnate, Joseph Phelps Vineyards now owns and farms over 350 acres of prime Napa Valley terroir. Their vineyard holdings cover some of the leading AVAs (American Viticultural Areas) in the Napa, from the 120 acres planted to vine on their St Helena ranch to vineyards in Rutherford, Stags Leap and Oakville, as well as Yountville and South Napa, all of which are renowned for the quality of their Cabernet Sauvignon. We have visited the Phelps team on a number of occasions and are always impressed by the constant activity and innovation in the winery and vineyards.
In terms of climate and soils, the Napa Valley is something of a patchwork quilt, with complex soil profiles to rival many a traditional old world region, and temperature variations to match. The best Cabernet producing areas are to be found at the cooler Southern end of the valley, where the vineyards are refreshed by cool air being drawn up from the coast by convection. Here, the temperatures can be anything up to 7oC cooler than in the north of the valley and, with their long growing season, the result is consistently ripe, rounded tannins with great depth of flavour.
In 1978 Joseph Phelps released a new wine, Insignia 1974, a blend of the traditional Bordeaux grapes. This was groundbreaking stuff, as up until this point Californian wines had generally been released either as varietals (Merlot, Chardonnay, etc) or as style brands (such as the somewhat erroneous Red Chablis) so it was highly unusual to release a wine which did not immediately declare its style.
“At times, Joseph Phelps Vineyards is so low profile that it hardly stands out, despite its status as a premier Napa Valley producer. This reticence is a reflection of the owner's personality and style: Joe Phelps is shy and introspective, preferring to let his deeds and wines speak for themselves. ...He prefers that his wines win the accolades... He moved to Napa in the early 1970s, and today presides over one of California's greatest wineries, which routinely produces monumental wines.”
James Laube, Wine Spectator
The current vintage available in the UK is 2005. Due to its tiny production, Insignia cannot be bought on-line but please do call us on 01353 721 999 for availability and current pricing.
The 2005 Vintage
As each successive vintage of Insignia increases in finesse and density, the 2005 rightly takes its place at the top of the quality scale, highly rated at 93-96 points by Robert Parker. With only small amounts ever allocated to their overseas partners, this has put even greater pressure on the quantities available to the UK market, and we expect demand to be as high as ever – it always sells out on first offer. The fact that it would cost more to buy in the US now than it does here should also add some satisfaction for the UK buyer.
With copious rain in the early part of the season, and perfect weather at bud break and flowering to ensure a fine fruit set, producers in the Napa Valley were more than hopeful of a good vintage. Indeed, so successful was the fruit set that at Phelps, most vines produced three bunches of grapes where they would normally have produced just two, requiring a rigorous green harvest to keep the vines in balance. In the Napa Valley temperatures can easily top 35°C during September, yet in 2005 the weather was more temperate, prompting people to talk of Napa’s ‘Bordeaux vintage’, with some producers worrying that without an Indian summer the fruit wouldn’t have the opportunity to develop fully. Thankfully, September and October had magnificent weather, cool but consistently sunny, which meant that the grapes ripened to perfection, and were picked at exactly the right time.
This cooler growing season meant that the grapes spent much longer on the vine than usual, being harvested up to a month later than in an average year, and Phelps harvested the Insignia fruit between 29th September and 1st November, an unprecedentedly late harvest. Despite nature’s generosity the production of Insignia was down, the smallest ever, bar 2004, as the emphasis was, as ever, on making a wine of the highest quality and consistency. As in 2004, all the fruit has come from Phelps’ own vineyards across Rutherford, Napa, Stags’ Leap and from their St. Helena ranch. Happily, the reduction in Insignia meant a small increase in Phelps’ Cabernet Sauvignon 2005 production.
The Wines
Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon, Joseph Phelps Vineyards 2005
Fermented in stainless steel, this wine spent 18 months in oak, 50% new French and American barrels, 50% two year old barrels. Vibrant black red in colour to a firm rim, with a luscious nose of stalky black fruits, spice and crème pâtissier, leading to a dense, layered palate of black cherry, creamed black fruits and ripe, velvety tannins with concentrated, spiced finish. Deceptively drinkable, it will age for 10 years plus.
Insignia 2005, Napa Valley (please call 01353 721 999 for pricing and availability)
92% Cabernet Sauvignon, 7% Petit Verdot, 1% Merlot. Deep, deep purple-black, opaque right to the rim, with a visual texture of velvet. Densely fruited on the nose, with restrained black skinned fruits, sloes and damsons, with a trace of spice and oak. On the palate it is fresh on entry, with pure black fruits again underpinned by traces of spice, with the tannins barely discernible until the very end of the finish. Wonderfully stylish, incredibly restrained, this is a wine which bridges the gap between the old and new worlds and will evolve and mature for 15 years plus.
The 2006 Vintage
The 2006 Napa growing season got off to a slow start, cooler and wetter than usual, with flowering some ten days later than normal. Flower set was rapid and consistent, promising a good yield. Apart from a brief, record-breaking heat wave at the end of July, the summer was in all other respects normal, neither too hot nor too wet and, with the potentially high yield, green harvesting was carried out in the early autumn to reduce the load on the vine and ensure that the remaining grapes could ripen to their optimum level. Harvesting was carried out between 26th September and 27th October, with the Cabernet harvested before the Insignia.
Joseph Phelps Cabernet Sauvignon, Napa Valley 2006 (please call 01353 721 999 for pricing and availability)
85% Cabernet Sauvignon, 11% Merlot, 2% Petit Verdot, 2% Malbec
Deep red black to the rim, with a rich, musky nose of mulberry, red fruits and spicy new wood, very intense and approachable. Richly spiced on the palate, concentrated black fruits with substantial ripe tannins behind, this is broad, rich and long, combining pure, overt fruit and a classy structure to give it the potential to age for up to a decade. From 2011
Insignia, Napa Valley 2006 (please call 01353 721 999 for pricing and availability)
95% Cabernet Sauvignon, 5% Petit Verdot
Dense black red right to the rim, opaque, with a fabulous nose of spicy, dusty black fruits, alluring but closed at the same time. On the palate intense black fruits, musky, spiced and rich, hints of cedar with distant oak masked by the intensity of the fruit, all underscored by massive yet superbly ripe tannins going to an extraordinarily long finish. From 2015
"The 2006 Insignia (95% Cabernet Sauvignon and 5% Petit Verdot; 16,000 cases produced) is a superb effort in this vintage. Another 30+ year wine, it boasts a dense plum/purple color as well as abundant notes of licorice, black currants, charcoal, black olives, and graphite. Full-bodied, pure and rich with moderately high tannins, it represents a California version of a Bordeaux from Pauillac or St. Julien. Anticipated maturity: 2014-2045. 95+ points.
“In case you think the aging curves I have described are unrealistically long, I have the Joseph Phelps regular Cabernets from the mid-seventies as well as the Insignias in my cellar, and those wines are still drinking beautifully at 30 years of age. Today's wines are better made.” Robert Parker
For marketing queries, please contact Laura Taylor on 01353 721 608 or at laura@privatecellar.co.uk.
To find out more about the winery, please visit www.jpvwines.com
