Larkmead Firebelle 2016
-
Suckling
James -
Parker
Robert -
Dunnuck
Jeb
Product Details
Your Rating
Somm Note
Winemaker Notes
Firebelle found its stride in 2016 due to the year’s more moderate growing conditions. A slightly longer hang-time helped draw out the aroma profile on this wine, leading with red cherry and apple skin before descending gracefully to darker tones of plum and blueberries. Hints of incense and cola dance around semi-sweet chocolate notes as the perfume finishes with a gorgeous integration.
The complex aromas stem from the Cabernet Sauvignon while the palate of this wine is excitingly Merlot – open and supple, blue and resonant. The wine is broad and builds density in the mouth before it drops its fruit core for a dusty, bittersweet chocolate and cherry finish that bodes well for the ageability of this wine.
Blend: 67% Merlot, 27% Cabernet Sauvignon, 6% Petit Verdot
Professional Ratings
-
James Suckling
Attractive aromas and flavors of black olives and plums. Medium body, firm and silky tannins and a juicy finish. Nice, linear tannins. Turns chewy and muscular. Precise and focused. Give it some time. Drink in 2022.
-
Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
Composed of 67% Merlot, 27% Cabernet Sauvignon and 6% Petit Verdot, the deep garnet-purple colored 2016 Firebelle (White Label) has a seductive nose of spiced black berries, black forest cake, preserved plums and kirsch with touches of eucalyptus, espresso, licorice and dried herbs. Medium to full-bodied, the spiced black fruit flavors completely coat the palate with loads of mint and herbal sparks, framed by plush tannins and just enough freshness, finishing on a lingering aniseed note.
-
Jeb Dunnuck
The 2016 Firebelle checks in as a blend of 65% Merlot, 30% Cabernet Sauvignon and the rest Petit Verdot that’s still aging in 75% new French oak. Elegant, medium to full-bodied, bright and fresh, with perfumed notes of red plums, cherries, spice and forest floor, with a terrific gravelly minerality, it lacks the oomph of the 2015 but is certainly a perfumed, elegant, balanced red.
Range: 92-94
Other Vintages
2019-
Enthusiast
Wine -
Suckling
James -
Parker
Robert -
Dunnuck
Jeb -
Spectator
Wine
-
Enthusiast
Wine -
Suckling
James -
Parker
Robert
-
Suckling
James -
Enthusiast
Wine -
Dunnuck
Jeb -
Parker
Robert -
Spectator
Wine
-
Parker
Robert
-
Suckling
James -
Parker
Robert
-
Parker
Robert -
Suckling
James
-
Parker
Robert
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.