"I can't wait to see how this ages."
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| “What strikes you first about Philip Togni is an utter sense of propriety. Here is a man who was planting Cabernet in Napa Valley before the first American was launched into space. Togni has nothing to prove. And yet here he is, with his trim white beard and old army jacket, hampered by a cold one late winter day, shuffling around his winery high on Spring Mountain, 2,000 feet above St. Helena. He takes pains to show me an account, translated from Flemish, of a 1996 Belgian tasting, in which his 1990 Cabernet trumped the 1990 Château Latour. (‘Californische wijn beter dan Bordeaux.’) After five decades in some of Napa's best cellars, Togni does not presume. Certainly he could. Consider the 1969 Chappellet Cabernet, made just months after Togni's daughter Lisa was born; it's now widely considered one of the best Cabernets that California ever produced. His role in its creation is, by his account, minimal - the winemaking was just ‘blindly following Médoc practice,’ the traditions of very traditional Bordeaux …. ‘Looking back from the later heights of sophistication, it was all pretty simplistic,’ Togni says. ‘God smiled, and we had a miracle.’ Surely there's credit going unclaimed here. But demurral is Togni's style. His name isn't often uttered in Napa today, and his mountain property isn't a spot most ever will see …. Even in the 1960s, he was advocating for wines that demonstrated ‘real true vinosity’ - the complexities that make great Cabernet - rather than just a bottle full of fruit. In turn, the Togni wines have gained a reputation for astonishing endurance. They are tensile and savory, dark-fruited and cedar-edged, showing the broad, ripe structure that shows mastery with this particular grape. They routinely last 20 years or more, matching the toughness of great old Bordeaux with a Napan generosity.”
Jon Bonné, SFGate, Apr 2014
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| "Time passes, but little appears to change at this small, family run winery perched atop Spring Mountain where Philip and Birgitta Togni, along with their daughter Lisa, continue to build on legacy first established with Togni's epic Cabernets of the 1960s and 1970s, wines that are still magnificent today …. Congratulations to Philip, Birgitta, and Lisa Togni for a truly stellar set of wines. No one is more deserving of this success than Philip Togni, who has made some of the all-time great Napa Valley Cabernets going back to the late 1960s."
Antonio Galloni, Vinous |
| | | CABERNET SAUVIGNON ESTATE 2019
"The 2019 Cabernet Sauvignon Estate is a classy, sophisticated wine that shows the more restrained side of the year and this site. I imagine the 2019 will flesh out in time. Bright acids, red-toned fruit, dried herbs, mint and silky tannins convey finesse more than power. I especially admire the aromatics today. I can't wait to see how this ages .... It’s always a pleasure to sit down with Philip and Lisa Togni, even if that means virtually in our current world. Readers will find a number of compelling wines among these new and upcoming releases. The 2018 Cabernet Sauvignon Estate is a terrific example of the finesse of the year. I suspect the 2019 will be even better, as it has more depth and energy.
Antonio Galloni, Vinous |
| | CABERNET SAUVIGNON TANBARK HILL 2019
"It's telling that even Togni's 2019 Cabernet Sauvignon Tanbark Hill Vineyard—the early-drinking wine—needs a few years in the cellar. The barest hint of bell pepper accents bold cassis fruit and notes of wild thyme on the nose, while the medium to full-bodied palate is fairly open and generous, with enough suppleness to suggest only five years of cellaring will be necessary. Classically styled, it's streamlined in shape and long on the finish, ending with mouthwatering acids and soft tannins."
Joe Czerwinski, Wine Advocate |
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