2010 Matriarch

I still remember tasting the 2010s from BOND last year. The wines were drop-dead gorgeous then, and are just as impressive, if not more so, today. This is a great vintage for BOND, period. Over the last few years my sense is that the qualities of the five sites are becoming more and more expressive rather than being dominated by a 'Harlan' house style, which I sometimes felt was the case in the past. While the 2010s are going to require time, most of the 2011s should drink better earlier once the wines are bottled of course. BOND fans may want to take a look at my introductory comments in the Harlan Estate section for more context. Cory Empting is one of Napa Valley's brightest stars. Intellectually curious, with a huge passion for the world's great wines - not just those of Napa Valley - Empting seems perfectly poised to build on the legacy created at BOND by Bob Levy. Readers who can find these wines, the 2010s in particular, should not hesitate to pick them up, as they are breathtaking.

I have been excited about the BOND 2009s since I first tasted them 18 months ago. My enthusiasm for those wines is surpassed only by the 2010s. The 2009s are sexy, radiant and impeccably polished, while the 2010s are more inward, structured and brooding in style. It is impossible not to compare BOND to Bill Harlan's Harlan Estate. Although I am told the approach to farming and picking is identical in all the vineyards both estates look after, my sense is that the BOND wines are a little more vibrant than Harlan Estate, which tends to occupy a spot a little further out on the ripeness spectrum. It's hard to know what more there is to say about BOND. These are simply some of the most utterly magnificent wines I have ever tasted, and a true testament that terroir not only exists in Napa Valley, but that these are some of the most privileged sites for making wine anywhere in the world. In my opinion, in top vintages, the St. Eden, which emerges from the red soils of Oakville, and the Vecina, from Vine Hill Ranch, are two of the greatest wines in Napa Valley.