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96 points Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
The 2003 IX Estate Proprietary Red is a blend of 64% Cabernet Sauvignon, 31% Merlot and the rest Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot from their steep hillside vineyards. The youngest, tightest, most masculine wine of this quartet, it will benefit from another 5-6 years of cellaring and should have 25 years of life ahead of it. This impressive, blue/purple-colored 2003 behaves more like a 4- to 5-year-old wine than one that is a decade old. It is just beginning to strut its full potential. There is a roasted meaty character to this beauty, along with plenty of cassis, blackberries, blueberries, incense and spring flower notes. It admirably reveals the great terroir Ann Colgin and her husband, Joe Wender, have unlocked high above Lake Hennessey. (RP)
Wine Description
The Story
A blend of Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot, IX Estate Napa Valley Red is distinguished by complex fruit interplays, a luscious nose of rustic herbs, iron, clay and black fruits, huge layers of flavor and supple, sweet tannins impeccably well-balanced. The number IX refers to the parcel number and is also significant as the date Ann and Joe were married: 9/9. The 2002 vintage was the first, of four vintages, from this property to achieve the highest accolade of “a perfect wine”. Each year the blend displays extraordinary intensity, a beautiful purity, and a remarkably long finish. Approachable when young, it ages most gracefully
Wine Information
Wine connoisseur and critic, Robert Parker considers IX Estate "as close to a viticultural nirvana as I have ever seen." The Wine Advocate Issue 150. This twenty acre vineyard in the Pritchard Hill area of Napa Valley has been carved out of the rugged, rocky terrain of a one hundred and twenty acre hillside parcel that comprises IX Estate and is also home to Colgin's gravity fed winemaking facility. The low yielding vineyard overlooks Lake Hennessey and at 900-1400 feet the elevation insures a cooler than average temperature which gently ripens the fruit and preserves many subtle nuances in flavors. This site specific climate and terroir coupled with rigorous selection and neo-classical winemaking give the IX Estate Napa Valley Red Wine an unheralded complexity.
The 2003 Colgin IX Estate Napa Valley Red Wine is a blend of 64% Cabernet Sauvignon, 31% Merlot, 3% Cabernet Franc and 2% Petit Verdot.
Winemaker, Mark Aubert's Tasting Notes-
"My first impression of the 2003 IX Estate gives new meaning to the word intense! Each component of this cuvee was deeply pitched in both color and aromatics. With an average of fifty days on the skins, we were able to capture the elusive "terroir" notes of the IX Estate. Perfectly composed and brilliantly defined are the aromatics of fresh red berries, black licorice and ripe black cherries. Across the palate, the mouthfeel is pure richness framed by ripe, supple tannins with a fine acid structure. After nineteen months of barrel aging in 100% new French oak, the wine was racked just once before bottling without fining or filtration. The full bodied tannin of the 2003 IX Estate Red Wine ensure its ability to age gracefully for two decades, while its freshness and complexity make it a beautiful wine to drink near term."
We released 1200 cases (approximately) of 2003 Colgin IX Estate Napa Valley Red Wine in April 2006. Release price $175.