Lot Overview
Region: Dry Creek Valley (Sonoma County)
Vintage: 2024
Blend: 100% Malbec
Perplexity Original Source Guess: Wilson Winery (Rockpile/Dry Creek family)
Wine Berserkers Guess:
Alcohol: 15.0%
Oak Aging: ~40% new French oak
Cam Price: $9.92 ($119/case)
Retail Estimate: ~$60–$70/bottle (tasting room estimate)
Drink Window: 2026–2032 (my call)
Cameron’s Release Notes
“Damn, if 2024 isn’t the breakout year for Malbec here on the north coast. Broadly speaking, this is probably the best performing varietal out of the 2024 harvest.”
“Lot 59 2024 Dry Creek Malbec is at the top of my list, one of those wines where you stick your nose in the glass and the bouquet is such complex, expressive and hedonistic pleasure, you just know you’re gonna love it!”
Damn, if 2024 isn’t the breakout year for Malbec here on the north coast. Broadly speaking, this is probably the best performing varietal out of the 2024 harvest.
And I have tasted quite a few, but Lot 59 2024 Dry Creek Malbec is at the top of my list, one of those wines where you stick your nose in the glass and the bouquet is such complex, expressive and hedonistic pleasure, you just know you’re gonna love it!
Sourced from the same producer as Lot 54 Rockpile Zinfandel, this rich, ripe, opulent Malbec is pure rock-n-roll in the glass – a style I like to call BOOM BOOM. The winemaker told me it’s usually a blending component for the their various $80+ Rockpile Cabernet Sauvignon-based programs but, like so many producers, they’re simply cutting back production across the board. I think it’s fair to say you are looking at a wine that would retail for somewhere around $60-$70/bottle out of the tasting room.
If you like big, rich, ripe opulent-yet-perfectly balanced reds, folks its Back Up The Truck time. Yeah, sure, it may have been a blending component, but I promise you this is a fantastic stand-alone wine you don’t want to miss!
And it can be yours today for just $119/case!
Tasting Notes
Opaque core with magenta rim. The bouquet is immediately boisterous and vibrant with blackberry jam, cherries jubilee, blackcurrant and brown sugar beautifully complexed with violet florals and pink peppercorn perfume. Opening up further, the wine reveals a chocolatey underpinning swimming with plum reduction and savory umami notes. Gorgeous.
Ripe and supple on entry with a fantastic structure of big-grained tannins unfurling gobs of rich, ripe black cherry, raspberry liqueur, black pepper and chocolatey oak all beautifully integrated with fantastic length and persistence. Quite frankly, this wine kicks the pants off of many a $100 Argentinean Malbec.
100% Dry Creek Malbec
~40% new French oak
15% alc., pH 3.74, TA 5.85 g/L
Bottle Shock Status
Best after late 2025 (assumes bottling and release timing similar to other 2024 reds; adjust once exact bottling date is known).
Perplexity says
Source Guess: Wilson Winery (most likely), or a closely related Rockpile/Dry Creek house in the Wilson family group, supplying Malbec normally used as a blending component in $80+ Rockpile Cabernet programs.
How I’m reading the clues
Rockpile‑centric Cabernet program
The key line is that this Malbec is “usually a blending component for their various $80+ Rockpile Cabernet Sauvignon-based programs,” which strongly suggests a producer whose identity is built around Rockpile Cabernet and Rockpile reds at high price points.
Wilson Winery and its sister labels are deeply entrenched in Rockpile and Dry Creek, producing premium Rockpile Cabernets and Zinfandels that sit in or near the $80+ range at the top end, matching the way this underlying program is described.
Shared source with Lot 54 Rockpile Zinfandel
Being “sourced from the same producer as Lot 54 Rockpile Zinfandel” narrows this further to a Rockpile Zinfandel specialist that also does serious Rockpile Cab and uses Malbec from Dry Creek as a structural blending component.
Wilson and related labels are known for Rockpile Zinfandel and powerful Rockpile reds, making them a natural fit for a pair of lots like 54 (Rockpile Zin) and 59 (Dry Creek Malbec feeding Rockpile Cab blends).
Style, power, and technicals
15% alcohol, 100% Dry Creek Malbec, ~40% new French oak, big‑grained tannins, “pure rock‑n‑roll… BOOM BOOM,” and the comparison to $100 Argentine Malbec all point to a dense, hedonistic, high‑octane style—very much in line with the ripe, powerful profile associated with Wilson’s Rockpile/Dry Creek reds.
The tasting note (blackberry jam, cherries jubilee, brown sugar, violet, pink peppercorn, chocolate, umami) reinforces a plush, high‑extraction, oak‑polished style that fits with Wilson’s more opulent bottlings rather than a lean, old‑school producer.
Program behavior and pricing
A wine that would “retail for somewhere around $60–$70/bottle out of the tasting room” but typically disappears into $80+ Rockpile Cab blends is exactly the sort of high‑quality component that a Rockpile‑focused estate might be willing to move off‑channel when cutting back production.
Wilson’s positioning in Rockpile/Dry Creek, combined with the Cab/Zin/Malbec mix and price tier, makes it a very plausible match for the unnamed producer behind both Lot 54 and Lot 59.
Putting that together, Wilson Winery (or a very closely related Rockpile/Dry Creek label under the same ownership umbrella) is the most likely named source for Lot 59’s Malbec.
Drink Window
Early Enjoyment:
From late 2026, once the fruit and oak settle a bit, expect explosive black fruit (blackberry jam, black cherry), raspberry liqueur, violet, and chocolatey oak with plenty of structure and length.
Peak Drinking:
2027–2030, when the big‑grained tannins soften and the oak integrates, giving maximum plushness and complexity (spice, umami, floral notes) while still delivering that BOOM BOOM profile.
Hold Potential:
Up to 2032 with good storage; beyond that, primary fruit will gradually give way to more tertiary notes (dried black fruits, cocoa, savory, earthy tones).
My Call:
Drink window: 2026–2032 (peak 2027–2030).