2022 Philip Togni Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon, Napa Valley

Philip Togni's 2022 Cabernet Sauvignon Estate is another impressive effort from this 10-acre vineyard high on Spring Mountain. It's medium- to full-bodied, weighing in at just 13.8% alcohol, but delivers masses of ripe black cherries. Richly concentrated and dense, it's balanced by bright acids, while hints of mocha and fresh raspberries mingle easily on the long, tannic finish. "It's going to be alright," said Togni as we tasted it. "Just give it long enough." Like some of the vintages in the 1990s, the 2022 looks to have all the ingredients to be a 30-year wine.

97+ points Joe Czerwinski robertparker.com

Leads with beautiful capsicum notes and fresh, minted black fruit. Very black. It’s very lively, with excellent acidity and a wonderful mineral freshness. Super fine tannins are just ripe and right now showing nicely. It's a real standout of the vintage, showing a rich, ruby-purple hue, which is a great sign given the challenges of the heat spike that rocked the valley beginning 31 August. But at 2,000-feet of elevation, the temperature on the valley floor in St. Helena below was 5°C hotter than at the estate. Harvesting began on 23 August and finished around 12 September, and the Tognis felt the law of averages made a difference for them.

97 points decanter.com

Philip Togni Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon from Napa Valley is one of the great benchmarks of traditional, age worthy Californian Cabernet, unapologetically classical in both philosophy and execution. The estate sits high on Spring Mountain, above the Napa Valley floor, where altitude, cool nights and volcanic soils produce Cabernet of structure, freshness and restraint rather than opulence. Philip Togni is a towering figure in Napa history, trained in Bordeaux at Château Lascombes before returning to California in the late nineteen sixties. He established his Spring Mountain vineyard in 1979 with a clear intent to make wines inspired by Bordeaux, built for longevity, balance and intellectual depth rather than immediate impact.

The vineyard is organically farmed and planted primarily to Cabernet Sauvignon, supported by small amounts of Merlot, Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot. Volcanic ash, basalt and gravel soils are low yielding and naturally stress the vines, producing small berries with thick skins and intense flavour. Winemaking remains steadfastly traditional. Fermentation is conducted with wild yeasts, extraction is gentle, and ageing takes place in French oak, much of it older, to frame the wine rather than flavour it. The wine is bottled unfined and unfiltered, then released only when Philip Togni believes it is ready to begin its long life.

The aromatics are complex, serious and deeply layered. Blackcurrant, cassis and dark cherry form the core, supported by cedar, graphite and dried herbs. There are classical notes of tobacco leaf, pencil shavings and violets, with subtle earth and mineral tones that reflect the elevated Spring Mountain site. With air, the bouquet continues to evolve, revealing hints of leather, bay leaf and cocoa.

The palate is firm, composed and built for ageing. Dense black fruit moves through finely grained, authoritative tannins that give the wine structure and length without excess weight. Flavours of cassis, black plum, savoury spice and mineral earth unfold slowly, supported by bright acidity that keeps the wine lifted and precise. The finish is long, savoury and resonant, lingering with cedar, dark fruit and stone. This is not a wine for impatience. While it can be enjoyed with extended decanting, it truly shines after ten to twenty years in the cellar, with the best vintages evolving gracefully for three decades or more.

An exceptional match for roast beef, lamb, venison, game, mushroom dishes or aged hard cheeses. Philip Togni Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon is a profound expression of Napa Valley seen through a classical lens, intellectual, restrained and timeless.