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| Drinking Windows and Values |
| Community Tasting History |
| Community Tasting Notes (average 93.5 pts. and median of 94 pts. in 166 notes) - hiding notes with no text | | | Tasted by Labrador on 3/22/2024 & rated 95 points: This was a beautiful wine that was at the peak of its powers.
It was perfectly balanced and still quite fresh and elegant with a lovely nose of dark/red fruit with hints of spice. It was sublime in the mouth with just the right hint of sweetness. The finish was long and very enjoyable. It definitely had that "aaahhh" factor.
NOTE: We did not decant, and it showed a surprising amount of sediment That did not negatively impact the wine in any way, but you might consider decanting. (376 views) | | | Tasted by wineton.mee on 12/8/2023 & rated 94 points: 96 Insignia is showing very well today. Raj Parr thought it’s full of glyphosate junk lol, fair enough but I for sure don’t taste it in the wine. Feels no more than 15 years, the fruit is clean and polished, ripe cherries and plums, some chocolate shavings, cigar box and light bell peppers, not at all an oaky mess. A lot of enjoyment to be found here today or 10 years down the road. (973 views) | | | Tasted by Pitkin_CT on 10/7/2023 & rated 97 points: Drinking beautifully. Needed about an hour to open up (1088 views) | | | Tasted by Chekib m. on 9/8/2023 & rated 93 points: Medium ruby.
Intense and expressive nose, with marked cedary and menthol. cassis and blue berries, cigar flavours less prominent.
Medium body, soft and velvety with some slight tannins still present but not intrusive. Very balanced and good intensity throughout.
all flavours coming together; More red berries with slight blue berries flavours. Menthol, cedar and tobacco. Some licorice at the end.
Very long. Excellent. (1113 views) | | | Tasted by tinycellar on 7/2/2023 & rated 95 points: Gorgeous in every sense of the word. So many special qualities. At peak or slightly beyond. Still has a light bite. (1280 views) | | | Tasted by RBaird on 2/5/2023: dinner with Oscar, Ellen at Zeru. Yummy (1497 views) | | | Tasted by sfwinelover1 on 11/11/2022 & rated 98 points: One off magnum (hard to price individual bottles, but probably about $240) from a large private party purchase 2 years ago. Subtle and vibrant on the nose and palate with notes of mixed black and blue berries, dark florals, earthy minerality, chocolate, leather, anise, dark chocolate and a touch of tar. Mid purple, medium to full bodied, thick legs. Well integrated, silky medium tannins, light to medium acidity, no heat. VG++ complexity, VG+ persistence and intensity. The kickoff of magnum madness and weekend festivities, I knew I’d serve this in a group with my sis and her partner, even if the others (we were 8 in total for a dinner at the Noe Valley estate) weren’t wine cognoscenti. The ah so pulled the surprisingly firm cork out with an impressive pop, and the wine showed an almost ineffable lightfootedness, so much so I’d have put my chips in the middle on this being a BDX. More than drinkable off the pour, the suppleness of the wine made me just a bit concerned that this might lose altitude quickly, like, to varying degrees, the ‘04 La Jota CS and the ‘06 Araujo Eisele, so we kept this corked. But not to worry: not only did this not happen, but it continued to develop and deepen over the couple of hours it was open. A wonderful companion to our homemade pizza and calzones, this was more than equally comfortable on its own, and, while it’s in a great place—at least this bottle, as a well-stored magnum was—but probably not likely to get better, it feels to me like this should hold well over the next 5+ years, maybe more. This wine was not only the WOTW (the second “W” being “weekend”), but would have climbed the medal stand against any of the BDX from the tasting at csimm’s. It would have been nice to have it against the ‘16 Pontet, to which this was preferred, and/or the ‘06 Abreu Madrona, which this ever so slightly fell short of, as my favorite wine of the Autumn. It also felt a step or 2 above the VG++/excellent mid to late 90s Napas I enjoyed at the tasting soyhead arranged in August, although as observed in the lens of the BDX tasting, having so many similar wines together can sometimes make the individual qualities of each blur. As an aside, I’ve had numerous Insigs over the years, although this was the furthest from the vintage date (and perhaps the only mag), and this struck me as solidly the best, although they’ve all been at least 95 point wines by my scoring. Someone else in a note observed that ‘97 was the watershed year in Napa, when the warmth of the vintage led to fuller, riper wines, and after that year, that became the new normal (with later picks, presumably, compensating at least somewhat for relatively cooler vintages). While I’m not sure that’s 100% accurate, I note that, from personal experience in the past year or so, having had a ‘97 Shafer HSS and a ‘04 and a ‘09 of the same bottling and a PM LP from ‘04 and ‘14 along with this and more recent vintages of this cuvée, there is an undeniable trend in this direction. That said, with at least these 3 bottlings, they started far enough on the BDX side so that while I can’t unequivocally say I like the more modern stylings more, I can’t say that I like them consistently less, either and have felt very lucky to have all 3 of the cuvées in my back, and hopefully, future, pages. (2147 views) | | | Tasted by gerdberg on 7/29/2022 & rated 94 points: VISUAL IMPRESSION 5/5
Clarity: clear
Color depth: deep
Color shade: garnet red
SCENT 13/15
Purity of tone: clean
Intensity: pronounced
Aroma expression: raspberry, chocolate, blackberry, blueberry, mint
Development stage: fully matured
TASTE 17/20
Sweetness: dry
Acidity: low
Tannins: middle minus, well balanced and round
Alcohol: middle (13,5%)
Body: full
Taste intensity: full
Taste expression: pronounced; black cherry, blueberry, vanilla, wood, hints of sweetness
Finish: long
OVERALL IMPRESSION 9/10
Quality: excellent
Drinkability: drink now, still good for a few years (2219 views) | | | Tasted by prof b on 1/29/2022: Magnificent. Classic cabernet from California pre-ripeness rush of 97. (3122 views) | | | Tasted by UFGators on 12/11/2021 & rated 95 points: This wine really surprised me! My generous friend decided to pull this out as a challenging follow up to a magnum of 2003 Margaux. He nailed it! This has loads of body, black and blue fruit. My friend nailed it "blueberry pie". Sweet and long. Excellent. (2871 views) | | | Tasted by AB16 on 5/16/2021 & rated 97 points: Standout in lineup of 6 - 1996 cabs and Bordeaux. No bricking, sweet fruit in nose. Mid palate weight and sweetness that is easily identifiable as insignia or dominus. Drinking beautiful ly now and 10+ years to go (3380 views) | | | Tasted by gwpski on 5/13/2020 & rated 95 points: Very mellow - has aged extremely well (3835 views) | | | Tasted by Vinophiliac559 on 4/17/2020: Tasted blind, older cab fruit nose, leather, still with fairly abundant fruit, palate matches, clean, mostly resolved tannin, silky texture, nose continued to open with air throughout the evening. Very enjoyable and in a perfect spot. (3498 views) | | | Tasted by SMagowan on 12/19/2019 & rated 96 points: From a 6 liter bottle. The cork was soft and slightly crumbly. Deep purple all the way to the edge. Great nose of toast, dried cherries and raisins. Huge and fresh mouthful of berries, black pepper and turned soil. Excellent. (3611 views) | | | Tasted by wineappellation on 12/12/2019 & rated 94 points: Pnp. Already very smooth. Bell pepper, pronounced ripe black and blue fruits, sweet wood, cocoa, leather, earthy and some graphite. Halfway between Old & New World style. 15% Merlot. (3433 views) | | | Tasted by tinycellar on 9/12/2019 & rated 94 points: It's like meeting an old friend taking this wine out of my cellar. Opened one hour prior to dinner and found the timing just about right with the wine still evolving positively throughout dinner. A true experience with an excellent CA red. Excellent nose with cherry, plum, black berries and tobacco. Palate was silky smooth with soft but not weak tannin and decent fruit. A very balanced act still. Maybe another year to go but not much more. (3319 views) | | | Tasted by dfcrutcher on 4/1/2019 & rated 91 points: Nice soft tannins still with good structure and fruit. Clearly on the downhill side, though, so drink sooner than later. (2794 views) | | | Tasted by unionst on 11/8/2018 & rated 97 points: Tasted blind.
Dark garnet color. Watery rim about to brick but not yet.
Ripe red fruit, garagiste, spearmint, subtle brown sugar on the beautiful nose, evolves to include violets.
Rich red fruit on the palate, focused, perfect balance, tannins are fully resolved. Guessed Margaux - definitely an Old World style. I think wine is at the apex of its drinking window.
13.5% alcohol, I love Insignia and drinking the '96 makes me reminisce about this wine when made for finesse versus power. Sublime. (3156 views) | | | Tasted by Empirate on 7/6/2018 & rated 94 points: Nice at pop and pour, improved over 3 hours open and pouring glasses. Scant sediment.
Clear ruby with orange tint. Nose of marigold and dried lilly with leathery dark stone fruit, a variety of kitchen spice. Palate followed suit with great balance, resolved tannin. Finish lingered.
Great window and not likely more to gain with age for me, next 1-5 years if I had more. (3564 views) | | | Tasted by passion4wine on 11/25/2017 & rated 96 points: Served out of a magnum on 2017 Thanksgiving showing aromas of blackberry, black cherry, smoke, dried herbs and no lacking in ripe fruit, hints of tar and mocha. The 1996 Insignia is a wine in near perfect balance and harmony. Phenomenal showing for this pedigree Napa bordeaux blend. Showed no age or symptoms of decaying. drink this now and over the next 5-7 years. Wonderful. (4483 views) | | | Tasted by timcan on 5/29/2017 & rated 95 points: After an hour decant, opened up nicely. This one still has a few years left. (5820 views) | | | Tasted by skurtz on 4/17/2017 & rated 93 points: Excellent, PNP with an ah-so. Perfect with bone-in filet at Barclay Prime. Consistent with my previous notes. (5568 views) | | | Tasted by AllRed on 2/25/2017 & rated 95 points: 4th Saturday group uptown tasting (R&C's): Popped and poured with dinner, courtesy of S. Displays a melange of red and black fruit along with saddle leather, spice, florals and dried herbs. Integrated and balanced. Red currants and plum, tobacco and earth flavors with a lingering finish. At peak. (6059 views) | | | Tasted by dbg on 2/18/2017: Cellared since release, perfect cork and fill. Dark red, minimal lightening at rim. Dark fruits, leather and tobacco on the nose. Medium-full body, great balance, ripe fruit, a little complexity, resolved tannins, moderately long finish. Fully mature but in no danger of fading. Excellent-outstanding. (4840 views) | | | Tasted by galewskj on 2/6/2017 & rated 93 points: Guys Wine Night - Bring something you've been saving (Jason's House): Pop and pour, drank a good-sized glass over about 2 hours. I didn't think this was breadking down at all. It was plush, with some anise, saddle leather and clove. It did have a dark streak to it. I thought this wine was drinking well. (4441 views) | | | Only displaying the 25 most recent notes - click to see all notes for this wine... |
| By Stephen Tanzer
Vinous, Vertical Tasting of Phelps Insignia (Apr 2016) (4/1/2016)
(Joseph Phelps Vineyards Insignia Napa Valley) Subscribe to see review text. | By Stephen Tanzer
Vinous, May/June 1998, IWC Issue #78
(Joseph Phelps Vineyards Insignia Proprietary Red Wine Napa Valley) Subscribe to see review text. |
NOTE: Scores and reviews are the property of Vinous. (manage subscription channels) |
| Joseph Phelps Producer website
In the late 60s, Joseph Phelps was running one of the largest construction companies in the U.S. when he won the bid to build Souverain Winery (now Rutherford Hill) located a few miles outside of St. Helena. Enamored with the beautiful Napa Valley and contemplating a career change, in 1973 he bought the 600-acre Connolly cattle ranch in Spring Valley, and began planting vineyards. The winery was completed in 1974 and that same year the first Syrah was made, the first grapes were crushed at the new facility and the first Insignia was produced. It was a period of unparalleled activity, creativity, ingenuity, entrepreneurship and risk-taking and it put Joe Phelps on the map of top Napa Valley wine producers.
Nearly four decades later, the flagship wine, Insignia, is recognized as one of the world’s great wines. Twenty nine of 34 vintages have been rated ninety or more points by various wine publications. From 1990 to 2007, the average score from Robert Parker’s Wine Advocate is 94.5 pts., with the lowest score still a fabulous 91. The 2002 vintage was “Wine of the Year” by Wine Spectator Magazine, and the 2007 vintage has been rated 98 points by Robert Parker and 96 points by Wine Spectator Magazine.
Over the years, the goal of becoming 100% estate grown resulted in carefully planned acquisitions of prime vineyards in the Napa Valley. Today, the Phelps estate consists of the Spring Valley Home Ranch outside of St. Helena, Banca Dorada in Rutherford, Las Rocas and Barboza vineyards in Stags Leap, Yountville Vineyard in Oak Knoll, Suscol Vineyard in South Napa and Backus Vineyard in Oakville.
Beginning with the 2009 vintage, estate-grown wines include Cabernet Sauvignon, Sauvignon Blanc, Viognier, Insignia, Backus (the single vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon from Oakville) and Eisrébe, a dessert wine made from the Scheurebe grape. In addition, a small amount of Syrah is produced from fruit owned by Hyde Vineyards in Los Carneros.
Though the main focus is on Bordeaux varietals, Joe Phelps has had a life-long love affair with the wines of Burgundy and a desire to craft wines in that style. Originally Chardonnay was sourced from St. Helena, later from Yountville and then from Los Carneros. Through the years, however, Joe continued to search for the ideal spot to grow both Chardonnay and Pinot Noir, and his search ended when the perfect combination of climate, soil and location was found in Freestone, located in the Sonoma Coast AVA, a mere eight miles from the Pacific Ocean. In 1999, 200 acres were acquired and planting began. Today, 80 acres of Pinot Noir and 20 acres of Chardonnay are producing some remarkable wines which are available for tasting at the Freestone Guest Center. Visit Freestone Vineyards to learn more.Red Bordeaux BlendRed Bordeaux is generally made from a blend of grapes. Permitted grapes are Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, Merlot, Petit Verdot, Malbec and rarely Carménère.Today Carménère is rarely used, with Château Clerc Milon, a fifth growth Bordeaux, being one of the few to still retain Carménère vines. As of July 2019, Bordeaux wineries authorized the use of four new red grapes to combat temperature increases in Bordeaux. These newly approved grapes are Marselan, Touriga Nacional, Castets, and Arinarnoa.
Wineries all over the world aspire to making wines in a Bordeaux style. In 1988, a group of American vintners formed The Meritage Association to identify wines made in this way. Although most Meritage wines come from California, there are members of the Meritage Association in 18 states and five other countries, including Argentina, Australia, Canada, Israel, and Mexico.InsigniaOf interest concerning the sources for grapes for this wine:
http://wine.appellationamerica.com/wine-review/669/Insignia.html
jhtUSAAmerican wine has been produced since the 1500s, with the first widespread production beginning in New Mexico in 1628. Today, wine production is undertaken in all fifty states, with California producing 84% of all U.S. wine. The continent of North America is home to several native species of grape, including Vitis labrusca, Vitis riparia, Vitis rotundifolia, and Vitis vulpina, but the wine-making industry is based almost entirely on the cultivation of the European Vitis vinifera, which was introduced by European settlers. With more than 1,100,000 acres (4,500 km2) under vine, the United States is the fourth-largest wine producing country in the world, after Italy, Spain, and France.California2021 vintage: "Unlike almost all other areas of the state, the Russian River Valley had higher than normal crops in 2021, which has made for a wine of greater generosity and fruit forwardness than some of its stablemates." - Morgan Twain-Peterson Napa Valley Napa Valley Wineries and Wine (Napa Valley Vintners)Napa ValleySt. Helena |
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