Futo, OVSL, Napa Valley

Like this bottle a bit better than the last - Lots of sour cherry notes. Nice finish with lingering tannins.

2013 vintage

Napa Daytrip, Dec 2025; 12/3/2025-1/2/2026 (Napa) : Tasted at the winery. All wines had been opened and decanted ahead of time. Somewhat juicer than I'd expect. Grapefruit, pomegranate, red cherry. Somewhat grassy with eucalyptus notes as well. Grippy tannins. Slight cinnamon husk on the palate. Still very young, but showing some floral notes after some time. 91 points.

2019 vintage

Excellent but not quite good enough to consider as great.

2013 vintage

From magnum, the 2013 Futo OV/SL needs a few hours in a flared decanter to drink its best. Once it gets going, the remaining fruit provides sufficient balance for the voluminous, fully ripe tannins, and there's enough acidity to keep the stewed plum notes feeling fresh. Not the most complex or long-finishing wine, but a lovely pairing for beef wellington. Drink over the next decade.

2013 vintage

Excellent. Dark fruit, espresso, blackberry and tobacco

2012 vintage

Decanted for an hour and then poured back into bottle before drinking the wine over an hour period. On the nose dark currants, blackberries, and oak however the scent wasn’t that strong On the palate quite acidic but the tannins are pretty resolved. A bit of red fruit but it’s fading and quite tart overall, felt really alcoholic (?) hard to describe but its a big wine at 14.7%. Finish is quite short as well Not sure if this will …

2013 vintage

Corked. seems to be a problem with this wine.

2012 vintage

Big wine, blackberry, black currants, vanilla, very firm tannins, long finish, needs time

2013 vintage

Closed on the first night by massive tannins but opened up on the second night. Dark fruit, cassis and anise. Still tons of structure and a bit of a bruiser. These are nowhere near peak.

2013 vintage

Dark ruby in color with a short reddish rim. Dry and very fruity on the palate, with medium acidity and long legs. Showing black fruits with cedar, vanilla, spices, espresso, earth, licorice, tobacco leaf, herbs and peppercorn. Nice length on the finish with fine grained tannins and tangy cherries. This is a delicious Cabernet Sauvignon based Bordeaux blend from Napa Valley. Showing nice complexity with a great mouthfeel. Smooth and elegant, with a gorgeous nose. Rich, extracted and so enjoyable …

2013 vintage

Too extracted and bitter. Meh

2019 vintage

Manursing Memorial; 5/27/2022-5/29/2022 : My recent tasting of the 2012 OV/SL was full of surprises. First, in disappointing news, it didn't have the aromatic or flavor intensity I'm used to from Futo. The black and red fruits were rather indistinct; little else stood out. On the other hand, the wine was shockingly well balanced. I'm sensitive to high alcohol levels, and through some crazy Exposto magic, the 14.7% ABV barely even registered. Ditto the sweetness often found in bottles from …

2012 vintage

Seems to be hit or miss for me with this wine, and a miss this time. Nose was very reductive, with a stewed/barnyard top note. That dissipated, but never fully went away. What was left was a dark, dense, but monolithic and somewhat uninteresting wine. Not bad, just not great - and nowhere near my prior bottle.

2012 vintage

Nicely integrated. Good dark fruit - lovely.

2012 vintage

Really great Napa cab. Drank in honor of Wiley's birthday.

2013 vintage

Decanted for 2 hours, and drank over the next 2. Bold flavors of black cherry, blueberry and crushed rocks. A very good bottle, but not great. I think it needs another 2 -5 years in the bottle. Drank side-by-side with a much less expensive 2008 OV, and the OV was much more flavorful.

2013 vintage

Gorgeous silky finish

2012 vintage

24 Napa Reds : All tasted double blind. Brief impressions. This is quite nice with a variety of dark and dark red fruits, minerality, violets on the nose and palate. Fairly soft structural frame with lots of round tannins and an elevated but well integrated freshness. Today it has not the complexity, precision and weightlessness of the best wine but I guess in a setting where you can follow this wine over a few hours it would score one or …

2012 vintage

Napa battle (Napa Grill, Zurich) : Tasted blind, double-decanted. Sweet and spicy, red currant, mineral and with a cool feel to it. Still a bit wild on the palate and a slightly astringent finish. Solid, but merely a shadow of the Futo 5500 of the same vintage, in my view.

2012 vintage

Superlatively decadent

2013 vintage

Popped this last night. Not sure what was more disappointing- this wine for the first three hours, or Francis Tiafoe laying an egg on national TV at the US Open. This began to show its goodies, but only after a several hour decant and vigorous "coaxing" while in glass. She will get there, but it clearly needs time. Lay down remaining bottles for at least 3-5 years, maybe more. For those who own this, I wouldn't be in any rush …

2013 vintage

Sweet dark fruit with great balance and little bit of cocoa

2012 vintage

Flat out delicious. Hard to believe this is their second wine. At this price point, it’s hard to think of anything better. Balanced, integrated tannins, dark fruits and mocha, with a long velvety finish.

2012 vintage

Bold aromas of violets, blackberry, black cherry and cedar. On the palate, this wine was magnificent...a complex array of black cherries, blackberry jam, plums, licorice and mocha with an earthiness that added structure to the wine. Drink now or over the next 10 years.

2013 vintage

Rich and smooth. Almost a buttery texture. An outstanding wine today, but probably could have aged another couple of years

2012 vintage

Not interesting at all. Hold or sell.

2013 vintage

Sweet rich dark fruit with fine integrated tannins, lots of plum, blueberry and slight chocolate and great balance and finish

2012 vintage

With a one-hour decant, this bottle of 2012 Futo OV/SL has to be one of my favorites from Napa so far. Similar notes as my last bottle, but I felt the wine had more nuance than the previous. Plenty of black and dark red fruit but brought to the palate with indescribable flavors (for me at least) and sailed through the finish for a good 20 seconds.

2012 vintage

Great aromatics of chocolate, black cherries and espresso. Decanted for only 30 minutes, it hit the palate with ripe blackberries, plum and mocha...a bit earthy, but bursting with fruit and a wonderfully smooth finish. Going to visit the winery in July. Might have to search their cellar for more of this beauty!

2012 vintage

Beautiful wine in drinking window. Expressive nose; great balance and texture. Nose of cassis, leather and dark fruit. Cool balance between Oakville and Stags Leap. Enjoyed with Juan Mercado, Artis and others in St. Helena- Wine Company.

2012 vintage

Decanted for 2 hours and then consumed over 1 hour. Quick note: approachable now, dark fruit and cassis, with a surprising amount of acidity. Light tannins. Moderate complexity. A longer decant would have been better. I would not hesitate to open another bottle after 2025. Pllenty of life ahead for this wine, with some upside. 93+.

2012 vintage

The nose is all violet flowers to start which then gave way to more Bordeaux-Like aromas. The in mouth feel is delicate and elegant. Not a modern fruit bomb at alll. Briefly hinted at modern Cabernet but the palette was all Bordeaux. While I know that it is built on a platform of Modern Napa, I sensed the Old World structure in the flavors of this wine. Probably provided by the classic blend that this wine is a product of. …

2013 vintage

Wine Advocate: Grand Walkabout Tasting (NYC) : Nose of black currants and black pepper spice. Lovely, but still needs a lot of time for the tannins to soften.

2013 vintage

Cassis, asphalt, dark fruit. Still structured, but integrated nicely.

2012 vintage

This wine has added depth and gained polish in the year since I tasted it last (95 points - 10/16). I wasn't sure it would improve that much, since it was drinking well before - but time allowed it to keep its power while adding a good amount of finesse; it is among the better 2012's I've tasted. There is a depth to the fruit, along with a lightness on the finish, that is just wonderful. Inky black in color, …

2012 vintage

A very nice, well made wine. Decanted for 90 minutes, drank over next 90. An inviting nose of dark berries, a luscious mid palate with mineralistic tones, but a somewhat disappointing finish. Seemed like there was a bit of energy lacking, with barely present tannins that suggest this wine is in its window, to be drunk over the next 3-5 years. A nice effort, and I look forward to cracking their 2013's in the next couple years.

2012 vintage

Had been decanted for maybe an hour. Certainly open for business. Could drink this wine all day - very friendly on the palate and the back end. Maybe under rating a tick? Was just a solid 2 points lower for me than the 2014 5500 we tried after it. Still lovely stuff that was drinking great.

2012 vintage

Needs more time in the bottle. I'm finding the 2013's quite unapproachable when they're young

2013 vintage

Tasted after the 2011 Oakville with Tom. Dark and deep purplish ruby red. Velvety feel on the nose, perfumey and floral with dark red berries. Heavy tannins (8/10) with a beautiful structure. Tons of fruit in the attack, fuller in the mid palate. Black raspberries and black cherries. Strong undertones of dark cocoa. Full bodied and super long finish. Drink till 2042. (96+) Around 2/3 of the fruit is from the Oakville Vineyard while the other third comes from the …

2012 vintage

Nice wine. Quite young and tight. Decanted. Improved after an hour or two but a little tight and linear. Nice density and acidity. Not that expressive or interesting at this point. 93-94 but leaning toward 93. Deep blue black color. Notes of graphite, flowers, blackberry but restrained at this point.

2013 vintage

Gorgeous medium red that really catches the light. Sweet red fruits and a strange bit of funk on the nose. Raw, powerful tannins with strawberries, slightly unripe raspberries, and a strange funky note that matches up with the nose.

2013 vintage

A rich and dark red blend that is everything you can ask from a modern Napa Cabernet. Inky black in color, full in body, nose of black cherry, graphite, and cocoa. Layered tastes of boysenberry, mocha, pencil shavings, gravel, and cedar, with a somewhat tannic finish that smooths out (and deepens) after an hour or so. 14.7% alcohol. Has the stuffing to age, so I will wait another year or so to let the tannins integrate a bit more, but …

2012 vintage

Just received my allocation of this wine and I thought to try one of these young "New" wines. This one had a violet flower start on the palette which gave way to more restrained Bordeaux-Like flavors. The coloring reminded me of a young rich Cabernet. It was absolutely beautiful when I looked at it in the glass. The aromas hinted at modern Cabernet, but the taste was all Bordeaux. While I know that it is built on a platform of …

2013 vintage

Aromas of bell pepper, coffee and spice cake are delightful and inviting. The body is medium but provides structure to support pleasant layers of blackberry, blueberry, coffee, herbs, bell pepper and licorice notes. The finish is 25+ seconds. The green and herbal notes are fairly dominant, more than I prefer. Wonderful wine.

2012 vintage

Needs at least a 2 hour decant to show you the goods

2012 vintage

Deeply pitched violet core with a maroon rim. Beautiful in the glass. A big, broad shouldered BDX blend. This is centered in the new world/modern style. The fruit is way ahead of the structure. The quality of the material is undeniable, but I would like more structure & grip on a wine like this. Texturally, this is plush & classy, but ultimately a bit too soft. The fruit is a bit monolithic & I was searching for more Cabernet character …

2012 vintage

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Futo, OVSL, Napa Valley

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