Pure blackberry fruit, creme de cassis, and graphite are nuanced by garrigue and cocoa nibs laced with orange essence. Medium to full-bodied with youthful blue fruit, spiced plum, and violets that meld together, creating a profoundly symphonic and lyrical fruit melody that is impossible to resist. The vines are surrounded by a pristine wilderness and many native California shrubs; those qualities emerge in the wine as sagebrush, fragrant Bay Laurel, and layers of ironstone mineral and earth. A kind of soy-soaked cedarwood rounds out this meticulous wine.

The 2019 Chateau Pym-Rae is a textbook Mount Veeder Cabernet with its exotic red, blue, and black fruits as well as complex notes of mountain scrub brush, lavender, tobacco, and lead pencil. Hitting the palate with full-bodied richness, it has a layered, elegant mouthfeel, ultra-fine yet substantial tannins, and a great finish. It's one of those "iron fist in a velvet glove" type wines that will benefit from 2-4 years of bottle age and shine over the following two decades.

Extremely aromatic with flowers, currants, plums, and cocoa. Full-bodied with compacted fruit and ultra-fine tannins giving it a suppleness and finesse, yet it's very structured and long. Turns to sandalwood, hazelnut and subtle currants. Round and velvety texture at the end. Slightly deeper and denser. 55% new French barrels and 45% concrete eggs for 18 months. 80% cabernet sauvignon, 15% cabernet franc and 5% merlot. From biodynamically grown grapes with Demeter certification. Needs four or five years. An excellent mountain wine from the family owners of Pontet Canet.

The 2019 Pym-Rae is made up of 80% Cabernet Sauvignon, 15% Cabernet Franc and 5% Merlot, all aged in a combination of 45% new French oak barriques and small (260-gallon) concrete tanks. Impressively ripe and concentrated, it offers scents of cassis, violet and hints of dark chocolate on the nose, while the full-bodied palate is silky-smooth, framed by dusty tannins on the long, focused finish. Yes, it's somewhat Bordeaux-like in shape, but it's fully ripe, with black cherries emerging on the finish, along with the slightest touch of alcoholic warmth.