2017 Melka Metisse Martinez Vineyard
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Tasting notes
The 2017 Metisse Martinez comes from a site next to Ovid on Pritchard Hill and is 70% Cabernet Sauvignon, 20% Cabernet Franc, and 10% Petit Verdot. Aged 20 months in 75% new French oak, it's pure mountain fruit and boasts a saturated purple color as well as brilliant levels of black and blue fruits, graphite, crushed stones, licorice, and hot gravel. Rich, powerful, and structured on the palate, with a full-bodied, pure, seamless texture, it's going to benefit from 4-5 years of bottle age and evolve for two decades or more.
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Average Score
Jeb Dunnuck
Antonio Galloni, Vinous
More reviews and scores
The last wine in this range, the 2017 Métisse Martinez Vineyard shows all of the natural intensity of Pritchard Hill. The presence of 20% Cabernet Franc and 10% Petit Verdot infuses the 2917 with layers of nuance and structure. Inky dark fruit, chocolate, leather, licorice, grilled herbs and menthol all meld together in this full-throttle Cabernet. The 2017 needs a few years to soften, but it has so much to offer. Even in the early going, the 2017 is a knockout.
This comes from Pritchard Hill and is a blend of 70% Cabernet Sauvignon, 20% Cabernet Franc and 10% Petit Verdot. Most of the fruit was harvested on September 28 and the Petit Verdot was harvested on October 4. Deep garnet-purple colored, the 2017 Metisse Martinez bursts from the glass with exuberant blackberry pie, wild blueberries and red and black currants with touches of tobacco, wild sage and underbrush plus a waft of violets. Medium-bodied, the palate is elegant and refreshing with a quiet intensity of mineral-laced red and black fruits, finishing pleasantly chewy. 275 cases were made.
The 2017 Cabernet Sauvignon Martinez Métisse is the most expressive of the three Melka Cabernets. Aromatic, deep and beautifully layered, the 2017 captures the essence of what makes the wines from Pritchard Hill so special. The 2017 is a huge, dense wine that is going to need a bit of time to shed some baby fat. The blend, which incorporates healthy dollops of both Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot, works beautifully here. The blend is 82% Cabernet Sauvignon, 18% Cabernet Franc and 10% Petit Verdot.