“Super-impressive wines with beautiful purity, balance, texture, and complexity.” - Robert Parker

This is the one.

For all you lovers of rich, rockin’ ripe and ultra-premium red deals. A stupendous 93-point Cabernet blend from a Sonoma legacy just landed in our warehouse. Mind you this is NOT their inexpensive entry-level red cuvée that hits your corner store, but the flagship ESTATE red that gives out serious Silver Oak or almost Opus One vibes.

The original price was a humble $70.

From us, at $45 the value proposition is “strong like bull”.

Sure, there are cheaper wines. And thinner steaks. And V6 Mustangs (even electric ones these days). And furniture made from particleboard. And jeans that look like 501s. And… you get the drift.

But this is the real deal. A pumped-up, rock-solid wine that WILL overdeliver. Chalk Hill has been a pillar of the Sonoma wine scene for decades, ever since Fred Furth spotted the one-of-a-kind location from an airplane in 1972. Today wine magnate Bill Foley owns the estate and continues to support its legacy.

This stacked blend is led by just about half Cabernet Sauvignon, backed by 40% Malbec, and 11% Petit Verdot. What a bold formula, all sustainably farmed and raised in substantial new French oak. Loaded with heaps of red cherry, vanilla, tobacco, cedar up front. Darker, riper wild berries, a dusting of cocoa powder, and cardamom too join the party on the palate. It’s a big-bodied, opulent red, lavishly fruited with just enough balance to keep it classy. Drinking way above the $100 line in quality, this wine is best cellared or saved for a special occasion night with say a prime rib or roast game feast.

Thanksgiving is coming up by the way (hard to believe!) and you’ll want a nice selection of top shelfers to open. Add this to the mix while it lasts. You won’t regret it.

93 Points – Wine & Spirits

“Chalk Hill’s 300 acres of vines, on a rise above the Russian River Valley to the west and the Alexander Valley to the north, grow on varied topsoils over white volcanic ash. The top selection of red wine from the estate consistently focuses on Cabernet Sauvignon and Malbec (this vintage 49 and 40 percent, respectively, with 11 percent Petit Verdot). The combination takes Cabernet’s red fruit notes of cherries and currants toward a gentle, gamey richness. It’s meaty and savory, lasting on floral notes of lavender and violets. Sustaining freshness over the course of several days, this is a wine to cellar, or to decant for roast squab.”

91 Points – Robert Parker’s Wine Advocate

“Opaque purple-black in color, the 2017 Estate Red is a blend of 49% Cabernet Sauvignon, 40% Malbec and 11% Petit Verdot. It offers slowly unfurling aromas of cassis and black plums with notions of graphite, clay, mint chocolate and cigars. The full-bodied palate offers minerally fruits with a gently chalky frame and very good freshness to lift the finish. Drink 2020-2026”