Joseph Phelps, Insignia, Napa Valley

rich and ripe

2001 vintage

Special year

2013 vintage

From my late father’s cellar, this bottle had the single worst cork I have come across. It defeated all attempts to extract it, including with the Durand. I was left to using a fine mesh filter to get rid of the cork particles. The wine was not affected so far as I could tell. It was a fairly typical early 2000s Insignia, with plummy fruit, and a touch of secondary aromatic development. Tannins were almost undetectable. It did work well …

2003 vintage

Delicious again! What might be deemed to be fully mature for a California cab blend. Still vibrant fruit (blackberry predominate) with a noticeable mint/tobacco green element, edged with dark chocolate and a loamy flavor. Nice flavor complexity where the varied elements really played well off each other. Still clinging to some structure, for all that the tannins had essentially melted into the wine.

2001 vintage

Napa Daytrip, Aug 2025 (Napa) : Tasted at the winery. Dark cherry, dark cocoa powder, light leather, chocolate-covered blueberries, cherry stems. Still rather tannic, but can tell this will be beautiful over time. Favorite wine of the tasting! 92 points.

2019 vintage

Gorgeous. Soft tannins, plenty of fruit and life, with a nice hint of chocolate and even espresso. Paired with braised beef and carrots, it went down beautifully. Great way to start the new year!

2001 vintage

Big and rich. 13.9% abv, but tasted very ripe. Went great with grilled steak. No rush on these. Plenty of life left.

2001 vintage

Consistent with prior notes.

2001 vintage

Solid. 2.5 hour double decant and taken to my son's for Christmas dinner. Wonderful Bdx nose and palate. Over the additional 4 hours of slow ox at the table it just got softer and softer...... Dark red fruit.....perfectly balanced. Not a knockout wine at this stage, as it's mellowing, but mellowing very well. Many years to go for those who like aged Napa or Bdx. Not for the fruit bomb Cali people at this stage. Expertly made and blended.....paired very …

2013 vintage

A phenomenal showing of the 2013 vintage, this wine truly seems to hit its stride after a decade or more. Dark and brooding yet remarkably expressive, it offers layered notes of cedar, charcoal, cassis, plum, and blackberry. There is superb tension and presence on the palate. While it feels firmly in its ideal drinking window today, it has the structure and depth to continue evolving gracefully for another 10+ years.

2013 vintage

minor bricking: rich and ripe plum with some complexity; a style that i used to love but rarely drink any more; good for Christmas dinner with family

2001 vintage

Still needs several years.

2013 vintage

Excellent smooth

2019 vintage

Garnet, opaque, a touch of amber at the edge. The aroma is pure cassis with subtle herbs, mature and complex. Flavors to match, medium-full bodied, but noticeable tannin, which became more prominent in the long aftertaste. This does not seem like one of the greatest Insignias. I think its best days are behind it, not ahead. One bottle left of this vintage, will drink it soon. Ric

2009 vintage

Outstanding with cassis, spices, blueberries, coffee beans, wood, dark chocolate and minerals. Aged very well and thanks to a good friend for sharing this tonight.

2001 vintage

Like Lazarus, returning from the dead. Previous experiences with this wine showed it to be structured and shut down, but this time, it was singing. Decanted upon opening, the wine immediately opened up with a perfume of black raspberry, cherry, cassis, violets, and dark chocolate. Totally decadent. As the air settled in, the wine eased into our meal with a relaxed opulence, the vinous equivalent of quiet luxury. It was dense but not chewy, rich but not ostentatious. Creamy on …

2001 vintage

Just starting to drink well with big dark fruit and tannins that are starting to integrate. Has very good future potential.

1999 vintage

Wonderful showing with cherry, tobacco, spice, menthol, dark chocolate, blue currants and wood. Medium to long finish. Outstanding.

2001 vintage

Insignia never disappoints

2004 vintage

Excellent wine that still has time to cellar, but drinking great right now. 2 hour decant. Tannins are very smooth with still enough structure to hold up to a grilled ribeye. Good dark fruit. Proves that a good winemaker can still produce great wine in a difficult vintage.

2011 vintage

Disappointing. Poured into the decanter and tried at 30 minutes. Big dark fruit nose, a little basic for taste, but figured it would fill out with a few hour decant. This was the best it got unfortunately. 4 hours later it had declined. Built a little more body but the big fruit aroma had gone away. Let decant for 3 more hours and this remained kinda basic. To me, this is way too young. I've had many older Insignia's and …

2013 vintage

Last bottle, what a run... one of the best california cabs I've had

2004 vintage

This is one of the best wines I have tasted in several years. It has an amazing amount of structure for a 12-year-old.

2013 vintage

Had this with a 1999 and the 99 was immediately beautiful with nice fruits and zero tannin. Just a nice long finish. The 09 was a little tight on the first glass with a lot of tannins. After an hour or more it was drinking beautiful and the tannins had faded and was beginning to mirror the 1999. Both exceptional!

2009 vintage

Smooth for 2019. Typical Napa vibrancy. Expensive for what it is though

2019 vintage

Tasted at Phelps! Out of this world!

2009 vintage

Still has some growing up to do. Lots of tannin for mouth quench on the front, dark fruit and a bit of flint, long lasting finish.

2009 vintage

still powerful very good finish

1999 vintage

I decided to follow the advice of my CT friends and give it a good long decant, about 4-5 hours. This time, it was much more enjoyable, with only a faint trace of bitterness at the initial tasting. It opened up wonderfully afterward, with no sharp edges, only silky tannins and a gorgeous, lengthy finish. I still plan to give my other bottles until 2028, if I can manage to stay away. I’m hoping for more complexity and secondary aromas. …

2013 vintage

Excellent wine. In the category of Cali Bordeaux blends that are more polished than modern, single varietal cabs, but more powerful than most Bordeaux. Similar to Dominus and Les Pavots. Quite a big wine, but not a massive powerhouse. Powerful black and blue fruits that dominate and linger on the finish. Some toast oak and a little floral. Tannins completely integrated by now. Perfectly balanced acidity.

1999 vintage

Stewed, overripe fruit, one dimensional. I suspect this bottle was heat damaged at some point, I've had other Insignia from this era (although not 2001) that were much, much better. Wasn't even close to the '01 Ornellaia we had next to it.

2001 vintage

Decanted for about an hour. Still in great shape, better than the 98' tasted last year. Can still age but this feels like peak. Amazing.

2001 vintage

It has been over a year since I last tried a bottle. Opened three hours prior to serving. Put the cork back in and went to a local restaurant to meet friends for dinner. Dark fruit on the nose. The palate was berries, dark cherry, tobacco and hints of chocolate leading to a long finish. A really good bottle of wine.

2013 vintage

I gave the wine an hour of air prior to tasting and recording this note. It is still holding up beautifully Deep, deep ruby color, with just the slightest touch of bricking at the edges; black fruit nose. Velvety soft tannins with lots of beautifully integrated dark fruit and savory notes. No hard edges on this one. Just pure drinking pleasure. Wonderful!

2001 vintage

Bj, Lily, Brig, Zach Father's Day

2009 vintage

Needs a bit of air. Still quite primary and inky. Great density and concentration for a tricky cool vintage. Still young tasting. It has taken time but it is really coming around nicely. Hold a few more years. Outshone a 2011 Pontet Canet and Rubicon with greater complexity and depth of flavour.

2011 vintage

Because yesterday's tasting wasn't up to par, had to taste our last bottle of 2001 - Glad I did- Bottle difference is amazing. At opening a somewhat tight nose with a crisp finish. Nose of truffles damp earth, cigar, smoke on the tannins - a lovely compliment to our halibut . Will be trying more 'Joey' in near future. Need to observe suggested drinking wndows

2001 vintage

On its last legs, but still got it.

2011 vintage

Pop and pour(with filter) - very smooth. a pleasant drink with dinner, but on the delicate/weak side.

2001 vintage

Amazing! 1 hour decant and enjoyed slowly over several hours! Balance is perfection, nose to die for! Glides over the palate.

2019 vintage

Agree the previous reviews, this wine was big, jammy, and delicious but needed time to open. We decanted this for several hours was still tight. Went back to this the next day and it was glorious, opened up beautifully.

2009 vintage

this showed really well at a dinner i brought this to; super polished, elegant and mature. fruit was still there but not over the top. medium bodied with some good acidity and a bit of a claret like elegance to this. Tannins were super soft and the finish was long and pleasant.

2013 vintage

Yum! Rich, silky, fresh, vibrant. It certainly did not taste like an old wine, other than the well-integrated tannins. It did not change with airing, although to be fair my friend and I drank the bottle pretty quickly.

2001 vintage

Agree with JOEDWINE’s review. Well everything except that part about how the wine tasted after 3 hours. It was so delicious that it did not hang around that long.

2009 vintage

Leather and juicy fruit nose. Medium plus finish of green fruit and green pipe tobacco.

2004 vintage

Mint and eucalyptus nose. Rather simple and clipped palate. Shutting down?

2019 vintage

This powerful, full-bodied, inky dark wine needed at least an hour of air to show its best. All sweet black and blue fruit on the nose with creosote, vanilla and some minerality making an appearance. Voluptuous mouthful of secondary fruit with an incredibly long finish and some pleasant tannic grip. There is no denying the quality of the wine, but I couldn't say it made a great pairing with my medium-rare filet minion that screamed for a Bordeaux. At or …

2001 vintage

From Magnum, Decanted and served. This is a big and muscular wine and is true to the 2013 vintage with all it ripeness and fruit. Frankly we had this 10 years too early , especially from magnum, and we saw only part of what the wine can deliver once it ages a bit more and deliver a more multifaceted experience. For lovers of fruit this is now at the right place but for us it needs a lot more age …

2013 vintage

Just like the Togni, served prior to this one, I thought this was too young and tannic for the moment. Some others around the table disagreed and scored this a lot higher.

2013 vintage

The 2013 Insignia, decanted, exhibits sediment on the bottle’s side and some in the bottom. I tasted it shortly after decanting. It has an opaque black cherry color. The initial nose is faintly floral, with notes of violets and roses. The sweet fruit red berries are prominent on the palate, followed by sous bois and mild tannins. The finish is slightly bitter and lasts for a considerable time. While it’s still quite young, it’s approachable now and should improve significantly …

2013 vintage

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Joseph Phelps, Insignia, Napa Valley

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