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2018 Nicholas Allen Wines Carte Blanche The Mark

Not Currently In Auction

Latest Sale Price

November 19, 2023 - $110

Estimate

RATINGS

96Vinous / IWC

Deep and layered in the glass, with gorgeous aromatic presence...superb. I very much like the energy here. Rose petal, lavender, mint, spice and mocha linger.

96James Suckling

...sliced-berry, fresh-herb and wet-earth character. Medium-to full-bodied, balanced and layered. Bright and energetic. Ripe, polished tannins. It’s very succulent with a salty undertone.

96+ Jeb Dunnuck

...full-bodied aromas and flavors of assorted dark fruits (blackberries, cassis), toasted spices, graphite, and scorched earth...full-bodied...

94+ The Wine Advocate

...notions of cassis, wild blueberries, Morello cherries and minted dark chocolate plus nuances of underbrush and pencil shavings. The full-bodied palate is packed with black fruit and earthy layers, supported by a firm backbone of grainy tannins and fantastic freshness, finishing long with a lively skip in its step.

REGION

United States, California, Napa Valley

Napa Valley AVA is the most famous winemaking region in the United States and one of the most prestigious in the world. With nearly 43,000 acres of vineyards and more than 300 wineries, it is the heart of fine wine production in the United States. Winemaking started in Napa in 1838 when George C. Yount planted grapes and began producing wine commercially. Other winemaking pioneers followed in the late 19th century, including the founders of Charles Krug, Schramsberg, Inglenook and Beaulieu Vineyards. An infestation of phylloxera, an insect that attacks vine roots, and the onset of Prohibition nearly wiped out the nascent Napa wine industry in the early 20th century. But by the late 1950s and early 1960s Robert Mondavi and other visionaries were producing quality wines easily distinguishable from the mass-produced jug wines made in California’s Central Valley. Napa Valley’s AVA was established in 1983, and today there are 16 sub-appellations within the Napa Valley AVA. Many grapes grow well in Napa’s Mediterranean climate, but the region is best known for Cabernet Sauvignon. Chardonnay is also very successfully cultivated, and about 30% of the AVA’s acreage is planted to white grapes, with the majority of those grapes being Chardonnay,