Quintessa Rutherford - $127.49

Wine Details

Price: $127.49
Producer: Quintessa
Region: Rutherford
Varietal: Dry Red Table Wine
Container Size: 750 ML
Flavors: currant, game, mint, mocha, plum
  • Award Winning
  • Red Wine
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Product Description

  • Due to a very concentrated vintage, the 2004 Quintessa takes a departure into the realm of power, allthe while maintaining the finesse and elegance that have been the signature of the wine from the Quintessa Estate since its inception. An opaque jet black robe leads to a bold attack, transitioning into a weighty layered mid-palette of infinite complexity. The finish is supple and round with good length and exquisitely forged tannins.

Expert Ratings

Ratings   Vintage Source Flavors
Tanzer - 89 Details: ($120) Bright, saturated ruby-red. Sweet aromas of roasted plum, mocha, truffle, loam and maple syrup. Sweet, lush and broad, with fat flavors of currant and spices. Finishes with substantial, building, dusty tannins that coat the teeth. This would make a very good steakhouse red. 2002 Tanzer currant, game, mint, mocha, plum
WineAdvocate - (89-91) Details: A 9,500-case blend of 77% Cabernet Sauvignon, 20% Merlot, and 3% Cabernet Franc, the 2002 Proprietary Red Wine boasts a deep ruby/purple color as well as lovely scents of flowers, plums, black currants, and notions of cherries, earthy/loamy soil, and tobacco leaf. Clearly the richest Quintessa to date, it is medium to full-bodied, with a seamless integration of wood, tannin, and acidity. Anticipated maturity: 2005-2014. Not yet released. Tel. (707) 963-7111; Fax (707) 963-7867 2002 WineAdvocate
Tanzer - 91 Details: ($110) Bright red-ruby. Musky, rather exotic aromas of dark raspberry, blackberry, woodsmoke and spicy oak, complicated by a mineral pungency. Fat, sweet and lush, with deep flavors of dark berries and truffle. At once classically dry and pliant, with a fatter texture than most past releases of this wine. The finish features big, broad, dusty tannins; good building length; and a note of Rutherford dust. 2001 Tanzer currant, minerals, new oak, spices, spicy, strawberry
Tanzer - 89 Details: Dark red. Slightly roasted aromas of plum, strawberry and currant jam, complicated by tobacco and mint. Expressive and slightly exotic on the palate, with superripe red fruit and tobacco flavors and a whiff of raisin. The roasted element carries through in the mouth. Finishes with building tannins, a note of caramel and moderate thrust and grip. 89 points 2001 Tanzer
WineAdvocate - (90-91) Details: The core blend for the 2001 is 73% Cabernet Sauvignon, 20% Merlot, and 7% Cabernet Franc. The wine is rich, but it was disjointed and clumsy when tasted. It possesses high tannin and extract. This thick, juicy 2001 has fine potential, but it requires time in barrel to settle down. It was one of the few 2001s I tasted that was not already seamless and brilliant. However, everything in it is impressive, including its purity as well as length. (Price not yet determined) Tel. (707) 252-1280; Fax (707) 252-1024 2001 WineAdvocate caramel, currant, mint, plum, raisin, strawberry, tobacco
WineAdvocate - 88 Details: The 2001 Proprietary Red Wine (a 9,000-case blend of 86% Cabernet Sauvignon and 14% Merlot) reveals a dark, saturated ruby/purple color as well as a sweet nose of black currants, forest floor, cedar, and tobacco leaf characteristics. Made in an elegant, medium-bodied, Bordeaux-like style with good fruit on the attack, but high tannin in the finish, it is best consumed between 2005-2012. Tel. (707) 963-7111; Fax (707) 963-7867 2001 WineAdvocate cedar, tobacco leaf
Tanzer - 91 Details: Tanzer's International Wine Cellar, Jan/Feb 05 2001 Tanzer blackberry, dark berries, mineral, oak, raspberry, spicy, truffle
Tanzer - 89 Details: (cabernet sauvignon with 25% merlot and 5% cabernet franc) Bright ruby-red. Complex aromas of currant, black cherry, dark raspberry, dark chocolate, graphite, tobacco, espresso, mocha and mint. Supple and sweet on entry, then quite fresh in the middle, with Bordeaux-like flavors of currant, mocha, minerals and tar. Not a large-scaled wine but nicely balanced. Finishes with big, mouthcoating tannins and finishing notes of charry oak and dark chocolate. 2000 Tanzer black cherry, currant, dark chocolate, espresso, graphite, minerals, mint, mocha, oak, raspberry, tar, tobacco
WineEnthusiast - 92 Details: This estate has pulled out all the stops and produced a delicious wine of substance, finesse and great charm. It floods the palate with flavors of blackcurrants and cassis that carry ripely sweet fruit impressions deep into the taste buds, but it’s dry. The oak is elaborate and in keeping with the fruit. For all the size, it’s a feminine wine, and best enjoyed in its youth. 2000 WineEnthusiast cassis, oak
WineAdvocate - (89-91) Details: There are 10,000 cases of the 2000, a blend of 70% Cabernet Sauvignon, 20% Merlot, and 10% Cabernet Franc. In this vintage, Melka was assisted by France's great oenologist, Michel Rolland. Not surprisingly, the elegance has been retained, but Rolland and Melka have built more texture and intensity into the mid-palate and finish. To Quintessa's distinctive polite, graceful, refined character they have added more texture, sweetness of fruit, and flavor. The wine is richer, more complex, and longer than the 1999. It should evolve gracefully for 12-15 years after bottling. (Release date 9/03) Tel. (707) 252-1280; Fax (707) 252-1024 2000 WineAdvocate
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Food Pairings

Category Pairing
Cheese Soft Pungent Cheese
Pasta & Grains Lasagna
Sauces Red Wine Sauce

Awards and Accolades

  Name Vintage
Award Winner 100 Best Wines - 2008 - Wine & Spirits  

Wine Terms

Name Value
United States Wineries exist in all fifty states, but the most predominant (and best) wine comes from Northern California, Oregon, and Washington State, with New York gaining a foothold in the industry. American wines make up about 75% of all wine sales in the US. The appellation system uses the term AVA (American Viticultural Area) to determine where wines were produced, but grape varieties can be planted anywhere in the country. American wineries generally use varietal labeling, and government regulations require that the variety on the label must make up at least 75% of the blend (in Oregon it’s 90%). The words reserve, special selection, private reserve, classic, and so on have no legal definition in the US. Some wineries use these terms to indicate their better wines; others use the words as a marketing tool to move lower quality wines off the shelf.
California California produces the majority of wine made in the United States. Chardonnay, Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Sauvignon Blanc, Zinfandel and Pinot Noir dominate the wine production in California, but many other varietials thrive in the California climate. Many fine wines are produced in California using Mediterranean grapes.
Napa County Napa County is located north of the San Francisco Bay Area in California. At the north end of Napa County is the Bay Area's second tallest peak Mount Saint Helena, and to the far south of Napa County lays the section of the Napa Valley that bleeds into Carneros. When the first white settlers arrived in the early 1830s, there were six tribes in the valley speaking different dialects and they were often at war with each other. The Mayacomos tribe lived in the area where Calistoga was founded. Napa County was one of the original counties of California, created in 1850 at the time of statehood. Napa Valley is widely considered one of the top wine regions in California and all of the United States. By the end of the nineteenth century there were more than one hundred and forty wineries in the area. Today Napa Valley features more than two hundred wineries and grows many different grape varieties including Cabernet Sauvignon, Chardonnay, Merlot, and Zinfandel. The region is visited by as many as five million people each year, making it the second to Disneyland as the most popular tourist destination in California.
Rutherford The region of Rutherford is a large alluvial fan north of Oakville that spreads north and south in the middle of Napa Valley, CA. This sloping mass of sediments deposited by the river gave birth to some of the most famous and historic wineries in Napa. Composed of gravelly, sandy clay loam soil, in recent years you can't hear much about Rutherford without the fraise "Rutherford Dust", most likely do to the warm growing temperatures. Rutherford warm weather is well suited for the Cabernet Sauvignon which is the main wine of the region.

Tasting Notes

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