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The February 2021 Auction: Part 4

Auction # 647 | View Auction Schedule and Details
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Auction Ends: 2/25/2021 6:00:00 PM PDT

Lot #548. Futo Proprietary Red Estate 2012

Description: Consists of 1 Magnum, 1.5L
Score: 99 RP.
"The original wine from the Oakville Estate Vineyard is a relatively small cuvée of 546 cases. The 2012 Proprietary Red Estate is a blend of 72% Cabernet Sauvignon, 24% Cabernet Franc and 4% Petit Verdot. This is a drop-dead beautiful wine with an absolutely extraordinary nose of white flowers, blueberries, blackcurrants, licorice and camphor. Stunning forest floor notes also make an appearance in this ripe, full-bodied, opulent wine that is begging to be given a three-digit score. The silkiness of the tannins and the stunning purity of fruit of this unfined and unfiltered wine is simply breathtaking. This is just an incredible effort . . . . This is a small but magnificent estate on the lower hillsides of the Oakville corridor in the Mayacamas Mountains just below Bill Harlan’s estate and the Bond Winery. The original wines that came from their Oakville estate have been supplemented by grapes from another estate in Stags Leap, and some blends were put together at a less-expensive price point, one called He-Li-An-Thus and a Stags Leap/Oakville blend called OVSL. The quality of these wines is truly world-class, and what proprietor Tom Futo has done with extraordinary success has been to use a relatively significant percentage of Cabernet Franc with his Oakville blend, while the Stags Leap relies primarily on Cabernet Sauvignon. The newer estate, which is labeled Futo 5500, is after the address on Silverado Trail. It produces between 375 and 400+ cases of wine that are largely Cabernet Sauvignon-dominated. Aged in the special super-expensive T-5 Taransaud barrels (air-dried for five years prior to coopering), this is a wine of great finesse and elegance and a noteworthy addition to the superstar sweepstakes in Napa Valley. The new babies include an Oakville/Stags Leap blend called OVSL. Futo co-ferments grapes from the two estates together and, obviously, wants the product to reflect both of these microclimates in Napa. I’m not so sure I totally agree with that idea, but the quality is impressive. The price point is seemingly lower as well. The last offering, which is a wine that is made from purchased grapes in the Soda Canyon and Atlas Peak region, from white tufa volcanic-laced soils, is the He-Li-An-Thus, which means sunflower." Wine Advocate #221, Oct 2015
Provenance: The Cambrian Cellar
Lot Location: Orange County
Estimate: $325


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