Tech Notes
Wine Details
Decanter
James Suckling
Jeb Dunnuck
Wine Advocate
By Quintessa
2022
Vintage Notes
The 2022 growing season began with vigor, benefiting from late fall rains in 2021. With this nutrient storage, the vines relied on their reserves to usher them through the following drought year. Dry winter conditions prompted early bud break, and a cool spring followed. Moderate temperatures throughout much of summer meant veraison aligned with a more historic ripening calendar. Late-season heat encouraged ripening, and the smaller clusters accelerated harvest. Picking commenced on September 9 with our younger vines in the Riviera block and concluded on October 1 in our Limelight block. The fruit showed exceptional phenolic ripeness, great acidity levels, and an elegant balance.
Wine Details
Appellation: Rutherford, Napa Valley
Vineyard Blocks: Dragon's Terrace, Las Casas, Monte Cruz, Corona, Silver Sur, Mt Calisse, Howard's Million, Silver Norte, Limelight, Bench, Riviera, Lake, Canyon, Winery, Tesoro
Seasonal Rainfall: 12.5"
Harvest: September 9 - October 1, 2022
Varieties: 93% Cabernet Sauvignon, 4% Cabernet Franc, 1% Carmenere, 1% Merlot, 1% Petit Verdot
Maceration: 20 days average skin contact
Alcohol: 14.50%
Bottling Date: July 2024
Tasting Notes
The 2022 Quintessa is a charming wine, opening with intense aromas of black cherry and cassis, complemented by notes of tobacco, bay laurel, cedar, and dark chocolate. Plush and inviting on entry, this wine's flavors align with its aromas. The palate reveals dark fruits and an undertone of crushed rocks, tar, and graphite. On the finish, this vintage displays the signature fine-grained tannins of our Quintessa terroir, backed by voluminous texture and fruit.
[Information provided by Quintessa]
Region
Napa Valley
Vintage
2022
Grape
Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, Carménère, Merlot, Petit Verdot
Country
United States
Unit Size
750.00 ML
Alcohol Percentage
14.50
Appellation
Rutherford
Wine: Quintessa, Napa Valley, Rutherford, California, USA, 2022
Score/Rating: 99
Suggested Drinking Window: 2028 - 2045
Review Date: 07/07/2025
Reviewed By: Georgina Hindle
Tasting Notes: Such an incredible wine here - one of the stars of the September releases. Smells amazing, cooling blueberries with fragrant blackcurrants, edges of florality - totally inviting scents. Full and filling in the mouth, this is ample with such a layered effect, super vertical and elongated. Tight and a little tense but it really works - such balance between black fruit, dried herbs, high acidity and a profound structure. Refined and beautifully presented. So much life, so much energy - this is pure class. A wine you don't want to put down. Feels hands off despite such concentration and power. Ends salty with sticky liquorice, mint and cooling wet stones. You could definitely drink this now but it will age too! [...].
Wine: Quintessa Napa Valley Rutherford 2022
Score/Rating: 97
Suggested Drinking Window: Best from 2030
Review Date: 04/10/2025
Reviewed By: Jim Gordon
Tasting Notes: So sweet and purely fruity on the nose, then layered, sophisticated, detailed and complex on the palate. Full-bodied and fully tannic, yet the fine-sand tannins are beautifully integrated, with ripe red and black cherries, raspberries, blueberries and cocoa. Elegant, intricate, charming and quite fresh. Made from 93% Cabernet Sauvignon, 4% Cabernet Franc and 1% each of Carmenere, Petit Verdot and Merlot. Drinkable now, but best from 2030.
Wine: 2022 Quintessa Proprietary Red
Score/Rating: 94
Suggested Drinking Window: 2025 - 2036
Review Date: 09/02/2025
Reviewed By: Jeb Dunnuck
Tasting Notes: Deep purple-hued, the 2022 Proprietary Red offers cassis, blue fruits, candied violets, and sweet spice-driven aromatics. It's medium to full-bodied, lush, soft, and sexy on the palate, with velvety tannins and a great finish. This upfront, supple beauty is ready to go and will drink well over the coming 10-12 years or so. Drink 2025-2036.
Wine: 2022 Quintessa Red Wine
Score/Rating: 94
Suggested Drinking Window: 2025 - 2040
Review Date: 06/12/2025
Reviewed By: Joe Czerwinski
Tasting Notes: A blend of 93% Cabernet Sauvignon, 4% Cabernet Franc and 1% each Carmenere, Merlot and Petit Verdot, Quintessa's 2022 Red Wine initially offers up mossy, savory and earthy notes, but those are backed by layers of mixed red and black cherries, plus some plummier bass notes. [...] there are hints of cedar and vanilla as well. In the mouth, the wine is medium- to full-bodied, fairly broad on the palate, showing some effects of the vintage's early September heat wave, stretching the wine's structural tannins into a coarser weave than typical, without upsetting the overall sense of harmony on the lingering finish.
