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Philip Togni: Napa Glory

“Mind blowing purity” from Vinous’ Wine of the Year 2024 [Galloni]
Philip Togni: Napa Glory

By any measure, Philip Togni has led an extraordinary life in wine. Even in his ninth decade, he continues to inspire California’s wine scene. Accolades keep coming. Awarding Togni’s 2021 Cabernet Wine of the Year (2024), Antoni Galloni noted that, “Many of [Togni’s] recent releases have been positively stellar.” That praise applies not just to the iconic 2021—a wine Philip and Lisa Togni believe could be their finest since 2001 or even 1991—but also the 2022, a remarkable triumph from a turbulent year for many Napa winegrowers.

 

Philip Togni has come full circle. The Bordeaux-trained Englishman became Chappellet’s winemaker in St. Helena in 1968. In just his second vintage, he created a Cabernet Sauvignon that became a Napa legend. As Galloni wrote in 2014: “Philip Togni was just a young man when he made the 1969. He could have retired immediately and still left behind an incredible legacy.”

 

Of course, he didn’t retire. Instead, Togni and his wife Birgitta planted a vineyard high above the fog line on the eastern slope of the Mayacamas Range, in Spring Mountain—Napa Valley’s coolest subregion. The rest is Napa history. In 2000, Togni’s daughter, Lisa, joined him. Together, they craft complex Napa Cabernets, among the world’s most distinctive. The results speak for themselves.

The Wines

Philip Togni Vineyard Tanbark Hill Cabernet Sauvignon 2022

Philip Togni Vineyard Tanbark Hill Cabernet Sauvignon 2022

Philip Togni’s ‘deuxieme vin’, Tanbark Hill, comes from the same Spring Mountain estate vineyard as it’s iconic Estate Cabernet and receives the same care in the cellar. The wine generally consists of fruit harvested from a 3-acre block (planted to 99% Cabernet Sauvignon) which has slightly richer soils. In addition to this fruit, barrels from the Spring Mountain bottling are added that are deemed more suitable for earlier drinking. Renowned for it’s coiled, ageworthy Cabernets, Togni’s Tanbark Hill is more succulent and approachable in style. Aged for 20 months in 40% new oak, the gorgeous mineral-tinged 2022 is already drinking well and will cellar beautifully for the next 10-15 years.

“The tannins are quite assertive at this young stage, in classic Spring Mountain Togni fashion, with a fine granularity about them. The wine feels quite complete, teeming with pure dark berry fruits and very fresh. Deeply mineral-tinged dark berries and black currants are framed by a wine with noticeable coiled-up energy and tension. It’s mostly mouthfeel at this stage and will soften with a few more years. Drink from 2025.”
95 points, Decanter
“The 2022 Cabernet Sauvignon Tanbark Hill Vineyard comes from blocks planted on slightly richer soils that have traditionally yielded more forward wines. Just about 100% Cabernet Sauvignon, this vintage is a bit more robust than prior vintages, with the concentration and tannins to carry it at least 20 years. Sage and cedar accent blueberries on the nose, while the velvety-textured palate is vibrant and fresh, with a cascade of raspberries and cherries on the lingering finish.”
94+ points, Joe Czerwinski, The Wine Advocate
Philip Togni Vineyard Tanbark Hill Cabernet Sauvignon 2022
Philip Togni Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon 2021

Philip Togni Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon 2021

Vinous Wine of the Year 2024

A true Napa legend, the Philip Togni estate vineyard lies in the remote Spring Mountain District AVA, on the western side of the Napa Valley. Sitting on the eastern slope of the Mayacamas Range, it’s the coolest and wettest region in the valley, partly due to its proximity to the Pacific Ocean (50 kilometres) and San Pablo Bay (40 kilometres). The east-facing, organic, dry-farmed 10-hectare Togni plot lies high up on the mountain itself, above the fog line at just over 600 metres. Mirroring Château Margaux, the vineyard is planted with 82% Cabernet Sauvignon and 15% Merlot, with the balance comprising Cabernet Franc (2%) and Petit Verdot (1%). The make-up of the wines reflects these plantings. It’s a steeply terraced site, home to old vines (33 years on average) in rocky soils of weathered sandstone and shale.

An essence of old-school classicism, the style of wine here hinges on elegance, refined structure and great ageability. Yields are kept low, and canopies are managed diligently to ensure full ripeness is reached at low alcohols. The Togni family pick early to preserve natural freshness, and the grapes are co-fermented to reinforce and heighten the expression of the site. In the winery, the grapes are sorted, gently destemmed, crushed, and cold soaked for three days. After 20 days’ co-fermenting, the wine was pressed to French oak (40% new Taransaud and Nadalie) where it aged for 20 months before bottling.

“The 2021 Cabernet Sauvignon Estate is an outrageously beautiful wine and also one of the wines of the year. A soaring, exotic bouquet makes a strong opening statement. Pliant and creamy, with mind-blowing textural finesse, the 2021 dazzles from start to finish. Hard candy, mint, lavender, Kirsch and spice linger on the close. The 2021 possesses mind-blowing purity and exceptional finesse.”
99 points, Antonio Galloni, Vinous
“Possibly the best wine produced here since the terrific 2001 or 1991, Togni's 2021 Cabernet Sauvignon Estate comes across as rather cool and fresh, with gentle grace notes of mountain sage lending nuance to the predominantly red-berried fruit, tinged with cassis, mint and cedar. It's medium to full-bodied, concentrated and firm, with silky tannins and refreshing acids providing ample structure and amplifying the lingering, elegant finish.”
98+ points, Joe Czerwinski, The Wine Advocate
“An absolutely riveting Cabernet showing a deep ruby-purple colour. Gorgeously fragrant at the cork's pull with terrific violets and loads of black currants and dark dried herbs. Medium to full-bodied with chiselled, precise tannins that build and build on the palate. At this early stage, the wine is full of ripe blackberry and black currant fruits that harbour impressive clarity of flavours, growing even more expressive with beautiful sagebrush nuances. Philipp Togni remarked that this vintage reminds him of St. Julien. Indeed, it is incredibly aromatic, elegant, and structured, and it is also a complete and seamless wine.”
100 points, Decanter
Philip Togni Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon 2021
Philip Togni Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon 2022

Philip Togni Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon 2022

A true Napa legend, the Philip Togni estate vineyard lies in the remote Spring Mountain District AVA, on the western side of the Napa Valley. Sitting on the eastern slope of the Mayacamas Range, it’s the coolest and wettest region in the valley, partly due to its proximity to the Pacific Ocean (50 kilometres) and San Pablo Bay (40 kilometres). The east-facing, organic, dry-farmed 10-hectare Togni plot lies high up on the mountain itself, above the fog line at just over 600 metres. Mirroring Château Margaux, the vineyard is planted with 82% Cabernet Sauvignon and 15% Merlot, with the balance comprising Cabernet Franc (2%) and Petit Verdot (1%). The make-up of the wines reflects these plantings. It’s a steeply terraced site, home to old vines (33 years on average) in rocky soils of weathered sandstone and shale.

An essence of old-school classicism, the style of wine here hinges on elegance, refined structure and great ageability. Yields are kept low, and canopies are managed diligently to ensure full ripeness is reached at low alcohols. The Togni family pick early to preserve natural freshness, and the grapes are co-fermented to reinforce and heighten the expression of the site. In the winery, the grapes are sorted, gently destemmed, crushed, and cold soaked for three days. After 20 days’ co-fermenting, the wine was pressed to French oak (40% new Taransaud and Nadalie) where it aged for 20 months before bottling.

“Philip Togni's 2022 Cabernet Sauvignon Estate is another impressive effort from this 10-acre vineyard high on Spring Mountain. It's medium- to full-bodied, weighing in at just 13.8% alcohol, but delivers masses of ripe black cherries. Richly concentrated and dense, it's balanced by bright acids, while hints of mocha and fresh raspberries mingle easily on the long, tannic finish. "It's going to be alright," said Togni as we tasted it. "Just give it long enough." Like some of the vintages in the 1990s, the 2022 looks to have all the ingredients to be a 30-year wine.”
97+ points, Joe Czerwinski, The Wine Advocate
“Leads with beautiful capsicum notes and fresh, minted black fruit. Very black. It’s very lively, with excellent acidity and a wonderful mineral freshness. Super fine tannins are just ripe and right now showing nicely. It's a real standout of the vintage, showing a rich, ruby-purple hue, which is a great sign given the challenges of the heat spike that rocked the valley beginning 31 August. But at 2,000-feet of elevation, the temperature on the valley floor in St. Helena below was 5°C hotter than at the estate. Harvesting began on 23 August and finished around 12 September, and the Tognis felt the law of averages made a difference for them.”
97 points, Decanter Magazine
Philip Togni Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon 2022

“Time passes, but nothing much seems to change at this reference-point Estate on Spring Mountain. Philip, Birgitta and Lisa Togni continue to make classy, elegant Cabernet Sauvignons in a super-classic style that rewards aging. These remain some of the most distinctive wines being made in Napa Valley.” Antonio Galloni, Vinous

“These remain benchmark mountain Cabernets, with decades of aging potential.”
Joe Czerwinski, the Wine Advocate

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