Lot Overview
- Region: 100% Rutherford District, Napa Valley (estate)
- Vintage: 2022
- Varietal: 95% Malbec, 5% Petit Verdot
- Oak Aging: 60% new French oak
- Alcohol: 14.5%
- Cases Available: 238
- Cam Price: ~$10.75/bottle ($129/case)
- Retail Estimate: $75/bottle
- Claude’s Source Guess: Peju Winery — Building the Tower (Malbec/Petit Verdot), Rutherford Estate
- Wine Berserkers Guess: Peju Winery
- Drink Window: 2025–2032 (peak 2026–2030)
Cameron’s Release Notes
I had originally intended to just buy a couple hundred gallons of this delicious Malbec for blending but I loved it so much I decided to purchase the whole lot. The source winery sells this for around $75/bottle. Gorgeously aromatic, plush and silky — the red wine equivalent of a porch pounder. Definitely worth drinking whilst you wait for your 2023 Cabernets to flesh out.
Tasting Notes
Medium to deep purple in the glass. Boisterous bouquet of ripe raspberry, the quintessential Rutherford dust, ripe black plums and chocolate complexed with a little seasoned oak, pretty purple florals and blackcurrant. Plush on entry with juicy raspberry kirsch riding beautiful red-rock mineral tannins interlaced with chocolate. Beautifully energetic with a juicy core of fruit and silky smooth finish — remarkably complex and utterly delicious.
✅ Bottle Shock Status: Bottled June 27th. Drinking great already per Cam.
Claude’s Source Guess: Peju Winery — Building the Tower Malbec/Petit Verdot, Rutherford Estate
Peju Winery has farmed their 30-acre certified organic Rutherford estate since 1983, planted with all five Bordeaux varietals including Malbec and Petit Verdot. Their “Building the Tower” bottling is a Malbec/Petit Verdot blend from this same estate — matching Cam’s 95% Malbec / 5% PV composition precisely. Peju’s Rutherford estate is explicitly described as producing wines with “characteristic dusty tannins” and “Rutherford dust” — the very tasting note Cam highlights. Retail pricing on Peju’s winery-exclusive varietal wines lands in the $65–80 range, consistent with Cam’s “$75/bottle” retail.
Cam’s narrative of originally wanting it for blending fits perfectly — Rutherford Malbec is a classic blending component for adding softness and color to Napa Cabernets, and Peju’s estate Malbec would be exactly the kind of barrel lots a négociant like Cam would buy for blending before deciding the wine was too good to use that way.
✅ Confidence: Medium-High — Rutherford estate, Malbec/PV blend, $75 retail, “Rutherford dust” terroir markers, and Cam’s blending-component narrative all align with Peju’s “Building the Tower” program. The main uncertainty is whether their retail price and exact vintage availability match precisely.
Drink Window
Drink now through 2032. Rutherford Malbec at 14.5% and 60% new oak is built for near-term enjoyment but has structure for the medium term.
Peak: 2026–2030.
My Call: ✅ Drink window: 2025–2032 (peak 2026–2030)