Château Peynaud
Château La Lagune
Haut-Médoc Red Bordeaux Blend 2019
Château Peynaud
Red Bordeaux Blend 2010
Nov 7-9. Atlanta. Nice, mellow Bordeaux. 45% Merlot, 40% Cabernet, 15% Cabernet Franc. — 10 years ago
Philip Togni Vineyard
Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon 1992
One of my favorite Napa producers & vintages from Philip Togni.
On the nose, ripe, perfumed florals, creamy fruits of; blackberries, mulberries, dark cherries, black raspberries, raspberries, plum and strawberries on the glass edges. Vibrant baking spices; vanilla, light cinnamon, clove & nutmeg. Dark smooth spices, mocha chocolate with caramel, dark berry cola, notes of black licorice, sweet tar, forest floral, fresh tobacco leaf, just a touch of dry herbs, graphite, loamy clay and dark, fresh red florals with lavender & violets.
The body is, round, ruby, lush & full. The structure, tension, length have just tipped to the very beginnings of the waning stage but, the balance is incredible. Ripe, perfumed florals, creamy fruits of; blackberries, mulberries, dark cherries, black raspberries, raspberries, plum and strawberries on the glass edges. Vibrant baking spices; vanilla, light cinnamon, clove & nutmeg. Dark smooth spices, mocha chocolate with caramel, dark berry cola, chalky volcanic minerals with some grit, crushed dry rocks, notes of black licorice, sweet tar, forest floral, tobacco with ash, soft leather, saddle-wood, some underbrush, just a touch of dry herbs, graphite, loamy clay and dark, fresh red florals with lavender & violets. The round acidity is near perfect. The long, round, ripe, ruby, lush, well balanced finish sings on the palate for minutes.
Photos of, the Philip Togni vineyard, cellar staff-Salvador Sanchez, Philip Togni and his daughter Lisa and their barrel room.
Producer notes and history...Philip Togni was born in England and earned a degree (the Dipome National d’Oenologie) at the University of Bordeaux under Emile Peynaud. World famous Winemaker & mega Wine Consultant Michel Rolland also studied under Emile.
After his studies, Philip Togni moved to the Napa Valley in 1959. His first job was planting vines at Mayacamas.
In his career, he has been the Winemaker for Chalone, Chappellet, Cuvaison, Gallo, Inglenook and Sterling before starting his own winery.
Philip Togni was the Winemaker at Chapellet when they made one of the top wines from the 1960’s, the legendary 1969 Chapellet.
Philip Togni Vineyards were founded in 1975 when he purchased 25 acres atop Spring Mountain at an elevation of 2,000 feet. It took until 1981 to plant the vineyard. Sadly, he had to replant in the early 1990’s due to phylloxera.
The winery released its first vintage in 1983, a Sauvignon Blanc. However, he no longer produces white wine.
It took a few more years until the first Cabernet Sauvignon wines were produced at the estate. The debut vintage for Philip Togni Cabernet was the 1985 vintage. The initial vintages of Philip Togni were 100% Cabernet Sauvignon.
Philip Togni does not produce wines with high alcohol. A style from Napa that is sorely missed by me.
The style of his wines are Left bank. Left Bank wines had a big influence on his winemaking and the estate. However, if you have ever spent time looking at his labels for alcohol levels, they’re nowhere to be found.
During the 1980’s, the BATF allowed wineries to state that their wine had the alcoholic strength of a table wine, which was around 7% to 14%. For wineries that had not requested to change their labels, those wineries were not forced to provide specific percent of alcohol. If their labels remain unchanged from their label during the 1980’s, they were only required to state the wine as table wine.
The vineyard contains rocky and clay soils at 2,000 feet. Like Howell Mountain, the vineyard is well above the fog line, which allows for more sunlight and riper fruit.
The Estate is planted to 82% Cabernet Sauvignon, 15% Merlot, 2% Cabernet Franc and 1% Petit Verdot.
Philip Togni makes three wines:
Philip Togni Cabernet Sauvignon. It is aged in 40% new, French oak barrels for an average of 20 months before bottling.
Philip Togni Cabernet Sauvignon is a big, powerful, tannic when wine young. PT requires longer cellar time. It’s made from ripe mountain fruit that can easily take a 10 to 20 year to fully mature. And trust me, it is closer to 20 years of aging before it’s ready to drink.
Philip Togni also produces a second wine called “Tanbark Hill.” It’s named after a prominent hill near the Estate. Tanbark Hill is a 3 1/2-acre parcel of young vines. A very good second wine for less money.
The third wine is Philip Togni Ca’ and is sweet red dessert wine that is produced from the grape, Black Hamburgh. This grape was popular in the Napa Valley before Prohibition. Black Hamburgh is also know as Black Muscat. It is a grape variety derived from the crossing of the Schiava Grossa and Muscat of Alexandria by R. Snow of Bedforshire, England in 1850, according to my studies.
Philip Togni remains a family Winery. The estate is managed by Philip Togni (in his 90’s), his wife Brigitta Togni and their daughter Lisa Togni. In time, it is expected that Lisa Togni will take over the estate.
— 6 years ago
Château Peynaud Bagnac
Bordeaux Merlot Cabernet Sauvignon 2012
It's $7 at Costco so I think we need to keep that in mind. It's a dry old world wine, nothing bad about it. Yes it's light but the flavor is nice. Better that you will get for $7 from Cali imho. — 8 years ago
Château Porto Carras
Côtes de Meliton Red Blend 2005
Made by Emile Peynaud, this is a world class Greek Cabernet Sauvignon easily mistaken for Bordeaux. After 11 years the wine shows classic muted cassis, loamy earth, unique dustiness and an elegant completeness that is difficult to describe, some forest floor/compost, but clean and crafty with plenty of fruit and verve left for my palate. The wine begs for roast pork or a flat iron steak with reduction and mushrooms. A Cab for Burghounds, mature, soft, complex with cut in the finish. Brilliant for the money. — 9 years ago
Stefan Dolhain
There is something special about La Lagune. In my younger days I read an interview with Émile Peynaud where he stated that in the whole of the Médoc there are only a handful of wines that can support 100% new oak: the first growths, Leoville-las-Cases, and maybe La Lagune as it is the most aromatic. The times have changed ever since, but there is some truth in the aromatic side of La Lagune. While I have good memories of some older vintages (1970 and 1982 come to mind), the wines have never been better than under the reign of Caroline Frey. This 2019 is absolutely gorgeous. After 10 minutes in the glass it displays black and red fruits, cedar wood and spices with a hint of lead pencil. In the mouth the 14,5 abv. goes unnoticed as elegance supremes over power. It combines Margaux-like silky finesse with Pessac-Léognan spiciness, the latter especially in the impressively long finish. Moreover it's amazing value. — 3 years ago