Tesseron Estate Pym-Rae 2016
(Mt. Veeder, Napa Valley, California) - [JS 98] [DM 98] [JD 97] [WA 97] [VM 95]

Winemaker Notes:
Depth, balance and freshness: every detail is carefully considered to reveal the potential of this rare vineyard, and gracefully highlight its unique character. The first vintage of Pym-Rae stays true to the spirit of the Tesseron family, and is both the culmination of a long journey as well as the beginning of a new adventure.

Blend: 76% Cabernet Sauvignon, 17% Merlot, 7% Cabernet Franc

Ratings & Reviews

98 Points - James Suckling:
"This is the debut vintage of this wine from the esteemed Bordeaux owner, Alfred Tesseron, who bought the property in the Napa mountains in 2016. Aromas of plums, wet earth, fresh herbs and tobacco. Some green olives. Turns to blueberries and blackberries. Full-bodied, yet reserved and layered with chocolate, walnuts and plums. Firm yet polished tannins give a framed sense to the wine. Savory. Racy and beautifully structured, it’s extremely drinkable already. Real wine." (Jan 2020)

98 Points - Decanter Magazine:
"Beautiful opaque ruby colour, leading with a subtlety that reveals lovely cedar and tobacco spices and Bay Laurel. Full-bodied, exhibiting a delicate balance between the structure's intensity and the fruit profile's lightness. A substantial backbone of acid tension, a hallmark of the 2016 vintage, lends buoyancy to the density of fruit, which lands on the mid-palate and stays there, building in stature and gaining intensity. A blanket of long, velvety tannins wraps itself around the palate, and the finish is long and exacting with spearmint and a wealth of warm earthen hummus notes. The Tesseron family, owners of Château Pontet-Canet, purchased the estate in 2016. It was owned by the late actor Robin Williams, who had planted the vines on the estate. Jérôme Ledit is the Estate Manager and Michel Rolland is the consultant oenologist. The vineyards are planted with Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, and Cabernet Franc and have been dry-farmed since the first day in 2016 that Alfred Tesseron set foot on the property. It is already unquestionably one of Napa Valley's greatest understated assets. (Drink between 2023-2035)" - Jonathan Cristaldi (Sept 2023)

97 Points - Jeb Dunnuck:
"The 2016 Pym-Rae continues to show well, with a rich, meaty, powerful style as well as loads of chocolaty black fruits, tobacco, black olive tapenade, and leather-like aromas and flavors. It's beautiful on the palate, with massive concentration and depth as well as terrific balance. This gorgeous, deep, opulent beauty is going to benefit from another 4-6 years of bottle age and live for 3-4 decades. (Drink between 2025-2067)" (Dec 2021)

97 Points - Wine Advocate:
"A blend of 76% Cabernet Sauvignon, 17% Merlot and 7% Cabernet Franc, the 2016 Pym-Rae displays a deep garnet-purple color and reveals wonderfully fragrant notes of candied violets, wilted roses, damp soil and black tea over a core of red and black currants, black cherries and warm blackberries plus touches of cigar box and camphor. Medium to full-bodied, the palate is evocatively singular, offering that rock-solid structure of mountain fruit, yet these are wonderfully ripe, silt-like tannins that beautifully support the elegant red and black fruit layers, finishing very long and very perfumed." - LPB (Oct 2018)

95 Points - Vinous Media:
"This is the debut vintage of this wine from the esteemed Bordeaux owner, Alfred Tesseron, who bought the property in the Napa mountains in 2016. Aromas of plums, wet earth, fresh herbs and tobacco. Some green olives. Turns to blueberries and blackberries. Full-bodied, yet reserved and layered with chocolate, walnuts and plums. Firm yet polished tannins give a framed sense to the wine. Savory. Racy and beautifully structured, it’s extremely drinkable already. Real wine." - Antonio Galloni (Jan 2021)