Wilson Foreigner Rancho Chimiles Napa Valley Valdiguie 2017
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Wine
Enthusiast - Decanter
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James
Suckling
Product Details
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Somm Note
Winemaker Notes
The Valdiguié comes from Rancho Chimiles in southeastern Napa County, owned and managed by Terry and Virginia Wilson and family. The wine is concentrated and fresh with berry, floral, and dried herb notes and is perfect on a warm evening.
Professional Ratings
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Wine Enthusiast
This is a tiny-production estate-grown wine. It is a deliciously light, bright and crisp red wine, fermented in concrete tank and aged in neutral oak. It tastes of flowers, cranberries and shocks of white pepper and lavender—a remarkably tantalizing combination of flavor and soft texture that is incredibly delicious and satisfying.
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Decanter
The historical Rancho Chimiles vineyards that gave birth to this shining Valdiguie are located in the eastern part of Napa Valley. A few decades old, the plantings are fully mature and tell a story of this expressive grape. This wine is produced with 30% whole-cluster fruit and wild yeasts, with minimal intervention. The result is a vibrant and fun holiday wine with notes of freshly picked violets that dominate the nose, alongside a hint of green herbs. The first sip is a mouthwatering festival of tart cherry and mint characterised by lively acidity. This is an ideal wine to enjoy with turkey stuffing and a slice of buttered turkey breast with a spoonful of cranberry sauce.
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James Suckling
Inviting aromas of black pepper, strawberries and dried herbs. Medium-bodied with gentle tannins. Bright and well spiced, with lots of juicy red fruit and berries. Savory, but refreshing. Lovely.
Other Vintages
2016-
Wine
Enthusiast
David grew up on the family ranch, Rancho Chimiles, and resides there now with his wife, Christine, and their two children. Rancho Chimiles is located in the Wooden Valley area of Napa and is home to the fruit you have tasted in many Stag’s Leap Wine Cellars, Pahlmeyer, Favia, The Prisoner, Cruse Wine Company, and other wines.
Chris and Suzaan are the proprietors and winemakers of Alheit Vineyards which is based throughout the Western Cape of South Africa, where they reside with their two children.
The two couples worked to gain experience at some of the most prestigious vineyards and winery estates in the world. Then, on the ten-year anniversary of that harvest in South Africa, Chris picked up the phone to tell David it was time for the foursome to create a label together, and Wilson Foreigner was born.
Undoubtedly proving its merit over and over, Napa Valley is a now a leading force in the world of prestigious red wine regions. Though Cabernet Sauvignon dominates Napa Valley, other red varieties certainly thrive here. Important but often overlooked include Merlot and other Bordeaux varieties well-regarded on their own as well as for their blending capacities. Very old vine Zinfandel represents an important historical stronghold for the region and Pinot noir is produced in the cooler southern parts, close to the San Pablo Bay.
Perfectly situated running north to south, the valley acts as a corridor, pulling cool, moist air up from the San Pablo Bay in the evenings during the hot days of the growing season, which leads to even and slow grape ripening. Furthermore the valley claims over 100 soil variations including layers of volcanic, gravel, sand and silt—a combination excellent for world-class red wine production.