David Arthur “DAV” Proprietary Red Blend 2016
Monday night dining at son Alec and D-in-law Vivianna’s, we ordered pizza’s from Pizza Monday Nights at Gia Mia in Naperville.
Alec opened up his cellar for a red wine and I selected this Proprietary Red Blend, an introduction to a relatively new label from one of our long timer favored producers.
Our CellarTracker records show we hold more than three cases of 20 different labels from David Arthur. We visited the estate up on Pritchard Hill Atlas Peak during our Napa Wine Experience back in 2013 as featured in these pages in this blogpost - David Arthur Napa Valley Estate Vineyards and Winery.
I got to share with Alec how it is that we have fun with this label since David Arthur is actually named for the grandfather of the owner/producer Long Family - a family affair consisting of three generations of the Long family, who over the years acquired the mountain land to raise cattle.
Today it is co-owned and operated by brothers David and Bob along with Joye Long, with David acting as General Manager and his daughter Laura runs the office and daily operations.
Not coincidentally, we were joined that trip by Sister and Bro-in-law Pat and Rodger, so wife Linda (nee) Long and Pat (nee) Long, daughters of Indiana cattle farmer Ned Long would be with us on this trip.
In addition to wife Linda and I being joined on this Napa trip by sister/sister-in-law Pat (Long), so it was only fitting we saved our David Arthur visit until this Long reunion trip together. The family reunion continued with a visit from Pat and Linda's niece Becky (nee) Long who lived near Napa and brought her family down to join us for a day in the region.
David Arthur’s website writes about this label. “ After nearly forty years of farming grapes on our Pritchard Hill Estate, we are pleased to announce the launch of the Next Generation of David Arthur Vineyards wine ~ DAV. We have created a new, modern wine that represents the bold personality found in each and every bottle of our Estate wines. This Bordeaux-style blend allows us to weave together the rich, concentrated elegance and power of our mountain-grown Bordeaux varietals as well as the best of surrounding vineyards within the Napa Valley. The wine is aged an average of 20 months in French oak barrels, blended with meticulous care and bottled at our vineyard estate. The result is a complex array of aromas and flavors that deliver plush, mouth-filling structure with soft, elegant tannins.”
David Arthur’s brilliant winemaker Nile Zacherle crafts this new Proprietary Red which is available for a fraction of their iconic ultra-premium labels such as the 2007 Elevation 1147 Cabernet (Parker’s top 1147 vintage), which sells for $275 and up, yet rivals them in ratings!
This release is from powerful 2016 vintage, rated a record high 98-point harvest according to Wine Advocate. It is an interesting and intriguing blend of Bordeaux varietals Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot and Italian grapes Sangiovese and Nebbiolo. David Arthur creatively crafted their Meritaggio Brand/label combining Sangiovese with the Bordeaux grapes. We’ve collected and still hold several vintages of that label dating back to 1997.
Dark ruby garnet colored, medium to full bodied, complex, nicely balanced and integrated, full, round, bright vibrant lively ripe sweet black and red fruit flavors accented by notes of cassis, spice and tobacco with a long and flavorful finish.
Not coincidentally, we were joined that trip by Sister and Bro-in-law Pat and Rodger, so wife Linda (nee) Long and Pat (nee) Long, daughters of Indiana cattle farmer Ned Long would be with us on this trip.
In addition to wife Linda and I being joined on this Napa trip by sister/sister-in-law Pat (Long), so it was only fitting we saved our David Arthur visit until this Long reunion trip together. The family reunion continued with a visit from Pat and Linda's niece Becky (nee) Long who lived near Napa and brought her family down to join us for a day in the region.
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| Farmer (in-law) Ned Long's daughters, Pat and Linda at David Arthur Long Ranch |
In addition to wife Linda and I being joined on this Napa trip by sister/sister-in-law Pat (Long), so it was only fitting we saved our David Arthur visit until this Long reunion trip together. The family reunion continued with a visit from Pat and Linda's niece Becky (nee) Long who lived near Napa and brought her family down to join us for a day in the region.
During that estate visit and tasting, we tasted the portfolio of David Arthur Bordeaux varietal labels. This label, a Bordeaux Blend, was not released until three years later in 2016, however.
Since Alec acquired a case of this label, he shared with me two bottles for our David Arthur collection, which I’ll exchange for like kind labels of equal value from our cellar.
David Arthur DAV Proprietary Red Blend 2016
David Arthur’s website writes about this label. “ After nearly forty years of farming grapes on our Pritchard Hill Estate, we are pleased to announce the launch of the Next Generation of David Arthur Vineyards wine ~ DAV. We have created a new, modern wine that represents the bold personality found in each and every bottle of our Estate wines. This Bordeaux-style blend allows us to weave together the rich, concentrated elegance and power of our mountain-grown Bordeaux varietals as well as the best of surrounding vineyards within the Napa Valley. The wine is aged an average of 20 months in French oak barrels, blended with meticulous care and bottled at our vineyard estate. The result is a complex array of aromas and flavors that deliver plush, mouth-filling structure with soft, elegant tannins.”
David Arthur’s brilliant winemaker Nile Zacherle crafts this new Proprietary Red which is available for a fraction of their iconic ultra-premium labels such as the 2007 Elevation 1147 Cabernet (Parker’s top 1147 vintage), which sells for $275 and up, yet rivals them in ratings!
Wine Spectator called Pritchard Hill “the Rodeo Drive of Napa Valley” and Wine Enthusiast says the area is “producing among the most profound wines in Napa Valley”. David Arthur sits in proximity to legendary neighbors Chappellet, Dalla Valle, Ovid, Bryant Family, and Colgin – labels often selling for a $1,000 or more. What a great value wine at less than $100!
Winemakers notes for this release - “A dark cerise color offering an array of fruit and spice aromas; bright cherry, red raspberry, baked cassis, and plum followed by notes of anise, baking spices, garrigue and cherry cola. The palate is soft and plush with fine-grained tannins offering beautiful acidity and structure. The finish is long and silky with flavors of candied plum, tamarind, brown sugar and molasses. Best 2018 to 2027.”
Winemakers notes for this release - “A dark cerise color offering an array of fruit and spice aromas; bright cherry, red raspberry, baked cassis, and plum followed by notes of anise, baking spices, garrigue and cherry cola. The palate is soft and plush with fine-grained tannins offering beautiful acidity and structure. The finish is long and silky with flavors of candied plum, tamarind, brown sugar and molasses. Best 2018 to 2027.”
This was a great compliment to the pasta and pizza and begs for a grilled beefsteak.
This label release was rated 94 Points by James Suckling, 90 points by Vinous and International Wine Cellar, and 89-92 points by Jeb Dunnuck
Dark ruby garnet colored, medium to full bodied, complex, nicely balanced and integrated, full, round, bright vibrant lively ripe sweet black and red fruit flavors accented by notes of cassis, spice and tobacco with a long and flavorful finish.
RM 93 points.
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