2017 Abreu Vineyards, Las Posadas, Napa Valley, California, USA

Lots of blue fruits, bay leaf, cedar, and chocolate notes emerge from the 2017 Las Posadas, which is one of the standouts of the 2017s from this estate. Lots of foresty notes, spice, cedar, and tobacco emerge with time in the glass, and it has a savoury, complex, full-bodied style that builds beautifully with air. Rich and flawlessly balanced, with a great mid-palate, 2017 doesn’t get much better.jeb_dunnuck, JebDunnuck.com (January 2021)

Wow. Blackberries, lead pencil, dried flowers, black olives and purple fruit. Full body and super polished and refined tannins. Creamy and well-defined. So polished. Nutmeg, clove and other dried spices. It goes on for minutes. Superb. Drink after 2024james_suckling, jamessuckling_com (January 2021)

The 2017 Las Posadas Proprietary Red—from a vineyard that sits above the fog line on Howell Mountain—is a blend of Cabernet Sauvignon and Cabernet Franc. Scents of caramel and singed sage join notes of dark chocolate and cassis on the nose, while the full-bodied palate is more silky than velvety, showing impressive elegance for a Cabernet-based wine from a mountain site. Already reasonably accessible, it should drink well for close to two decades.Drink 2023 - 2040Joe Czerwinski, Wine Advocate (September 2022)

The 2017 Las Posadas shows just how compelling Howell Mountain can be. The combination of a mountain site and a high percentage of Franc yields a wine of tremendous energy and pure, raw power. Inky dark fruit, gravel, scorched earth and chocolate open first, followed by swaths of Howell Mountain tannin that give the wine its personality and drive. Time in the decanter brings out the wine's imposing depth and textural resonance. This is a gorgeous rendition of Las Posadas.I can’t say I am especially surprised by the quality of the Abreu 2017s having tasted them several times over the years. If Brad Grimes were not a winemaker, his even-keeled temperament would make him a great surgeon or pilot. Grimes seems completely unfazed by whatever challenges any given vintage presents. He has complete trust in the work his crew does in the vineyard and total conviction about his choices. The Abreu winery is right down the street from the house I rented in 2017, so I stopped by a few times during harvest to see what was going on as fruit came in early in the mornings. It looked like any other year. And that is what consistency is all about. In tasting, the 2017s are a bit lighter in structure than most years, which only means the wines will be accessible with less time in bottle.Drink 2025 - 2042antonio_galloni, Vinous.com.com (January 2021)