Wine Advisor
Joseph Phelps, Insignia 2017
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Description
Tasting notes
Reviewed by: Lisa Perrotti-Brown
The 2017 Insignia Proprietary Red Wine is a barrel sample blended of 94% Cabernet Sauvignon, 4% Malbec and 2% Cabernet Franc, projected to age 24 months in 100% new French oak. Medium to deep garnet-purple colored, it features lovely crème de cassis, blackberry preserves and spice cake scents with touches of plum preserves and dried Provence herbs plus hints of tree bark and pencil lead. Medium to full-bodied, the palate is laden with energetic fruit, framed by firm, grainy tannins and finishing with a lovely minty lift. 7,700 cases are expected to be made.
Reviewed by: Lisa Perrotti-Brown
A barrel sample, the 2017 Insignia is a blend of 94% Cabernet Sauvignon, 2% Cabernet Franc and 4% Malbec, to be aged for 24 months in 100% new French oak barrels. Medium to deep garnet-purple in color, it bursts from the glass with bold scents of baked black plums, crème de cassis and fruit cake with hints of espresso, tapenade, hoisin and potpourri. Medium-bodied, the palate delivers mouth-filling black berry preserves and loads of earthy sparks, framed by chewy tannins, finishing with loads of freshness. Very promising! 7,500 cases were made (about half the normal production).
Reviewed by: Lisa Perrotti-Brown
The 2017 Insignia is a blend of 94% Cabernet Sauvignon, 4% Malbec and 2% Cabernet Franc coming from: 46% Las Rocas vineayrd (Stags Leap District), 22% Barboza vineyard (Stags Leap District), 13% Suscol vineyard (South Napa Valley), 10% Yountville vineyard (Oak Knoll District) and 9% Home Ranch (St. Helena). It was aged for 24 months in 100% new French oak barrels. Deep garnet-purple colored, it comes bounding out of the glass with exuberant scents of Black Forest cake, preserved plums and blueberry pie plus touches of redcurrant jelly, potpourri, clove oil and dark chocolate. Medium to full-bodied, the palate has gained weight from it's in-barrel offering, boasting rich, decadently perfumed black fruit preserves flavors with a racy backbone and velvety tannins, finishing long and spicy. 7,400 cases were made.
Reviewed by: Antonio Galloni
The 2017 Insignia is quite powerful and dense. Inky dark fruit, leather, spice, menthol, lavender and licorice all race out of the glass. After bottling, the 2017 is quite a bit more shy than it was from barrel. The 2017 was made entirely from pre-fire lots and naturally lacks the opulence the later picks would have added. If opened young, the 2017 will benefit greatly from aeration. In 2017, most of the fruit came from estate vineyards in Stags Leap.
Reviewed by: Antonio Galloni
The 2017 Insignia is dark, sumptuous and enveloping in feel, with a real sense of breadth and textural resonance. Cedar, tobacco, licorice, leather and incense give the 2017 striking aromatic nuance, but more than anything else, the 2017 is all about palate richness - and it has plenty of that.
Reviewed by: Antonio Galloni
A heady, flamboyant wine, the 2017 Insignia exudes textural richness and intensity from the outset. Raspberry jam, blood orange, pomegranate and sweet spices are all seamless in the glass. Sadly, production will be down sharply, around 7,700 cases as compared to 12-15,000 that is the norm.
About the Producer
Joseph Phelps, a building contractor from Colorado, first invested in vineyards in the Napa Valley in 1972. In 1974 Phelps and his winemaker Walter Schugg produced their first vintage of Insignia, which at the time was one of the first Bordeaux style blends in California. Its Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, and Merlot grapes are sourced primarily from Rutherford & Stags Leap (notably for `Insignia'); the Chardonnay and Sauvignon Blanc from Los Carneros & Napa (for the better quality fruit). Joseph Phelps Vineyards is a family-owned and operated wine estate with vineyards and wineries in Napa Valley and on the western Sonoma Coast. The winery was founded in 1973 by Joseph Phelps, a successful construction executive and entrepreneur whose early interest in wine led him to establish vineyards on a 670-acre former cattle ranch in Napa Valley. Over the next 42 years Joe became one of the most respected figures in the California wine industry, building Joseph Phelps Vineyards into a critically-acclaimed winery internationally known for its iconic wines and unwavering commitment to quality. Every wine in the Joseph Phelps portfolio is 100% estate-grown, overseen from grape to bottle by our dedicated winegrowing team. Their family owns and farms 390 acres of vines in Napa Valley on eight estate vineyards in St. Helena, Rutherford, Oakville, the Stags Leap District, the Oak Knoll District, South Napa and Carneros, as well as 100 acres over two vineyards on the western Sonoma Coast. Strategically chosen over many decades, each vineyard has its own personality and brings a different characteristic to our wines. Our commitment to the estate-grown model is our way of ensuring consistency and the highest quality we can possibly achieve. Our estate vineyards give our winemaking teams unparalleled depth and diversity when it comes to producing Joseph Phelps wines.
