Today we share a great story of the American dream. After his family immigrated from Hungary and settled down in the San Francisco Bay Area, Ralph Hertelendy started his wine education at a very young age — savoring French Grand Crus at the age of 5! Ralph was 15 when he created his first beer and then made his first wine in a basement at age 25. After getting his business degree from the University of San Francisco, Ralph became a sommelier and worked for several wineries in the Napa Valley as a Winemaker’s Assistant and in sales.
Ralph Hertelendy and Phillip Titus, one of Napa’s great winemakers, craft these wines to be big, dense and loaded with flavor complexity. A graduated of the famed UC Davis Enology and Viticulture program, Titus began his focus on viticulture and wine at the age of 12 when he began helping his father in the family vineyard.
2022 was not the easiest vintage in the Napa Valley, as major heat spikes made harvest conditions more than difficult. These are ’22 wines that you can buy with confidence. They are unabashedly bold and dense bottlings that are drinking beautifully in their heady youth.
Once again they have crafted one of the outstanding Napa Cabernet Francs I have enjoyed over the past year and the 2022 Hertelendy ‘Napa Valley’ Cabernet Franc (OB, 96) is already beautifully evolved, showing brilliant flavor density. Learn more about this famed Napa house at https://hertelendy.com/ and here are the outstanding new wines by Hertelendy.
2023 Vinoville Sauvignon Blanc- The 2023 Vinoville comes from Sonoma and Napa Valley Sauvignon Blanc grapes. Gooseberry and pink grapefruit blossom mark the nose with shades of kiwi. This is fresh, neatly-textured stuff that is drinking great in its vibrant youth. Drink 2025-2030- 91
2022 Hertelendy ‘Woolsey Road Vineyard’ Chardonnay- The 2022 ‘Woolsey Road Vineyard’ is sourced from this site in the Russian River Valley. This is dense, unctuous and delicious stuff that shows off the heat of the vintage. Buttered popcorn and saline drenched peaches combine with pie crust and shades of mango creme brûlée on the palate. Delicious now, enjoy over the next six plus years to come. Drink 2025-2031- 93
2022 Hertelendy ‘Russian River Valley’ Pinot Noir- The 2022 ‘Russian River Valley’ Pinot Noir was stored in a combination of new and neutral oak barrels before bottling. Cola and cran-orange tones mark the nose with baking spices and shades of cedar. The plate is smooth and silky with a refined mouthfeel and good sense of length and weight. Generous and delicious to consume now, enjoy over the next eight plus years. Drink 2025-2032- 94
2022 Hertelendy ‘Audere’ Red Wine- The 2022 ‘Audere’ is an inky blend of Cabernet Sauvignon with Merlot and Malbec all coming from the Napa Valley. Blueberry compote and graphite tones mark the nose alongside suggestions of allspice dusted black currants. The palate is concentrated and juicy with a silky texture and great sense of weight. Delicious now, watch this evolve over the next ten years. Drink 2025-2035- 94
2022 Hertelendy ‘Napa Valley’ Cabernet Franc- Another sultry and delightful vintage of this wine, the 2022 Hertelendy ‘Napa Valley’ Cabernet Franc is an amazing hot-vintage wine by proprietor Ralph Hertelendy. The wine combines 75% Cabernet Franc with the remainder Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon. Anise, pencil lead and red florals all combine on the nose with suggestions of fresh sage and creme de cassis. The palate is plush and refined with serious weight and glorious length. Smooth throughout the drinking experience, with well-defined tannins and a gracious core of black and blue fruits, enjoy this beautiful wine now and over the next fifteen to twenty years. Drink 2025-2040- 96
2022 Hertelendy ‘Signature Mountain Red Blend’ Red Wine- The 2022 Hertelendy ‘Signature Mountain Red Blend’ Red Wine was sourced from the Rockwell Ridge Estate on Howell Mountain. The wine combines Merlot and Cabernet Franc, offering pencil lead and blackberry compote on the nose alongside Turkish coffee notes. The palate is seamless and powerful with serious tension and richness. Generous and drinking marvelously now, enjoy over the next fifteen plus years to come. Drink 2025-2041- 96
2022 Hertelendy ‘Napa Valley’ Cabernet Sauvignon- A stunning new edition of this wine, the 2022 Hertelendy ‘Napa Valley’ Cabernet Sauvignon is a bit less initially reticent than the ’21 edition. Stored for 23 months in 90% New French and Hungarian Oak this is already beautifully evolved stuff, offering a great melange of black and blue fruits on the palate, showing chocolate pie, creme de violette and loamy soils. Full-bodied and opulent in terms of weight and overall texture, with bright tension that beams through the core, enjoy this not for the weary beauty over the next fifteen years to come. Drink 2025-2041- 96
2022 Hertelendy ‘Legend’ Cabernet Sauvignon- The beautiful 2022 Hertelendy ‘Legend’ is a stunning barrel selection Cabernet Sauvignon wine that is intense and opulent in the glass. Creme de cassis and black forest cake tones all mark the nose alongside graphite and shades of sweet pipe tobacco. The palate is gorgeous and dense with good underlying finesse. This is already evolved stuff that is impossible to enjoy in it is heady youth. Drink 2025-2041- 96