2018 Tesseron Estate Pym-Rae

Alfred Tesseron (of Château Pontet-Canet in Pauillac, Bordeaux) was looking for a special terroir outside Bordeaux to work with. He went looking for a place where the grape varieties he was familiar with from Bordeaux and then specifically to a place where these grapes were at their best. He found that spot in the originally volcanic and 500 meter high Mt. Veeder in Napa Valley. Tesseron came across the 29-year-old vineyard of actor Robin Williams, who had died two years earlier. Tesseron bought the vineyard in 2016 and named the project Pym Rae: the name Williams gave the vineyard, after the names of his children. Williams had never made wine from this vineyard, but Tesseron saw the great potential. The vineyard is now worked in the same biodynamic way as at Château Pontet-Canet and with the same precision and dedication.

The Tesseron Estate Pym-Rae is a blend of mainly Cabernet Sauvignon supplemented with Merlot and Cabernet Franc. In the glass, this Napa top has a deep garnet purple color and reveals wonderfully fragrant notes of candied violets, withered roses, damp earth and black tea over a core of red and black currants, black cherries and warm blackberries plus a hint of cigar box and camphorsuckle. Medium to full on the palate with a rock-solid structure of fruit, fine-grained tannins that beautifully support the elegant red and black fruit layers and finish very long and very perfumed.

GOOD FACT: In the Appendix tab you will find a lot of extra information about this famous winery, including the fact sheet

KEY FACTS

• Owned by the Tesseron family (Château Pontet Canet)
• Formerly owned by the late Robin Williams
• Located in Mount Veeder, one of the coolest wineries in Napa Valley
• Volcanic land with limestone and sedimentary rocks
• Much lower yields than the average Napa Vineyards
• Dry farming & Demeter certification
• Annual production is less than 15,000 bottles
• Unique packaging: a box of 3 to collect, illustrating the sky over Pym-Rae's vineyard on the first day of harvest
• 2018 is an iconic vintage