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2016 Prince of Hearts

Wine Details
Place of Origin

United States

Napa

Color

Red

Grape/Blend

53.8% Cabernet Sauvignon, 38.1% Merlot, 4.9% Cabernet Franc, 3.2% Petit Verdot

Vintages
20222021202020192018201720162015201420122011201020092008
Reviews & Tasting Notes

00

Drinking Window

2018 - 2028

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This is a spectacular set of 2016s and 2017s from Claude and Katherine Blankiet. Winemaker Graeme MacDonald has gotten the best out of both vintages. Since taking over following the passing of Denis Malbec, MacDonald has moved towards gentler extractions. The wines might get as much as 40-50 days on the skins, but with fewer pumpovers than in the past. That, along with other refinements, such as bottling a bit earlier, have helped give the Blankiet wines an extra degree of nuance and precision that is very obvious. Claude Blankiet describes 2017 as a year with three prolonged heat spikes, each of which lasted ten days as opposed to the more typical three or so. Here, MacDonald chose to shorten time on the skins in order to avoid overextracting the wines. Even in the early going, the 2017s are quite promising at Blankiet, especially for the Cabernet Sauvignon. Lastly, as good as the top wines are, readers should not overlook the Prince of Hearts, one of the very finest values in all of Napa Valley.