Buying options
Tasting notes
The 2018 Insignia is a blend of 87% Cabernet Sauvignon, 8% Petit Verdot, 3% Malbec and 2% Cabernet Franc, all from estate grown fruit. Tasted alongside the 2018 straight Napa Cabernet on two separate occasions, the Insignia is – unsurprisingly – a real step up. This is bold and rich, archetypal Napa: there’s a luxurious toast and vanilla cloaking to the intense, ripe dark fruit. On the palate, it is structured, with super-ripe tannins that need time to integrate, yet there’s also a linearity to the pure, concentrated fruit. Having had the chance to taste both the 2010 and 1998 vintages – both considered relatively poor vintages for Napa by many – shows how well Insignia can age, pointing to a very long life for the 2018.
Critic scores
Average Score
Antonio Galloni, Vinous
James Molesworth, Wine Spectator
More reviews and scores
The 2018 Insignia is racy and exuberant to the core. Soft and plush, with fabulous balance, the 2018 is such a showy wine today. Blackberry jam, leather, mocha, cloves and menthol build effortlessly. The 2018 can be enjoyed with minimal cellaring, but it also clearly has the potential to age. It is a total charmer today.
The 2018 Insignia checks in as 87% Cabernet Sauvignon, 8% Petit Verdot, 3% Malbec and the rest Cabernet Franc, from a mix of vineyards (mostly in the southern part of the valley) aged two years in new French oak. It has an incredible bouquet of cassis, currants, dark chocolate, lead pencil, and tobacco, and while it's unquestionably Napa, it has a regal, structured, almost Bordeaux-like vibe as well. Full-bodied, perfectly balanced, and layered on the palate, with silky tannins, this quintessential Insignia is up with the finest vintages of this cuvée I've tasted and is in the same realm as the 1997 (the first vintage I bought for my personal cellar), 2001, 2002, 2007, 2012, 2013, 2015, and 2016. 17,000 cases.
87% Cabernet Sauvignon, 8% Petit Verdot, 3% Malbec, 2% Cabernet Franc. Deep purple colour. Fully ripe and powerful on the nose with exotic cassis and coconut. The palate is brambly and glossy, with baking spices to the fore. There is depth despite the upfront fruit, which comes from notes of cedar and tobacco. Heady, rich and round, this is opulent without excess. Long and driven on the finish. (TP)
About the producer
California winery Joseph Phelps is best known for its flagship Insignia cuvée, one of the first and finest proprietary red wines in the Napa Valley.
Product details
Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Malbec/ Auxerrois / Cot
Red
Dry