2021 Bettina

The 2021 Bettina is brilliant, and I'd certainly put it in the same class as the flagship Cabernet Sauvignon. Beautiful crème de cassis, smoke tobacco, darker chocolate, and spicy wood notes all define the aromatics, and it's perfectly proportioned on the palate, with full-bodied richness, a deep, layered mouthfeel, plenty of tannins and structure, and a great finish. It's another regal, structured, age-worthy wine from this vintage that deserves 4-5 years in the cellar and will evolve gracefully over the following two decades or more.

The 2021 Bettina Proprietary Red Wine—66% Cabernet Sauvignon, 19% Cabernet Franc, 10% Merlot and 5% Petit Verdot—hits all the lofty expectations I had for it out of barrel. Ripe black cherries are perfectly complemented by faintly leafy, herbal-tea notes and hints of violets on the nose, while the palate is full-bodied, round and rich. A blend of fruit from David Abreu's Madrona Ranch in Saint Helena and his Las Posadas on Howell Mountain, it's expansive and generous in the mouth, with a long, velvety finish that showcases the exceptionally fine-grained tannins achieved in this vintage. Wow.

The 2021 Bettina comes across as a bit more complete than the Cabernet Sauvignon, although it, too, is a baby. Polished, silky tannins add to a palpable feeling of finesse. Lifted floral notes brighten a core of red/purplish fruit in this medium-bodied, graceful red blend.