Notes from the Archivist

"Paragon"

We saved one of the best for last (of our initial releases…plenty more coming!).

Although, at this point, picking the “best” is like choosing your favorite among eight ivy-league-educated children who call you every day just to say hi.

They don’t even ask for money. 

And similarly, we don’t ask for a lot given what you’re getting here.

We live in Napa, and drink a lot of the various Bordeaux varieties. But I’ve always thought there was a gap in the market. Why don’t we see more Right Bank blends? It seems like such an obvious match. Sure, there are plenty of “Proprietary Blends” out there, but few aim to replicate what the greatest Chateaux to the right of the Gironde have successfully done. Most use Cab Sauv as their base, with Petit Verdot, or Petite Sirah, along with Malbec or Merlot to round things out. 

As we gathered our first eight releases, Bobby had the foresight to suggest holding some of them back just in case we needed them. And if you’ve followed our path closely, you already know our Merlot had a small balance of the Rutherford Cab and Cab Franc added. The Cab Franc? It got just a kiss of our powerful Merlot. Still, enough wine remained to do something I hoped we could make happen – and this was the result. 

An elegant powerhouse, built “much like Château Cheval Blanc” as the 95-point Decanter review noted.

Buoyed by Cab Franc, pumped up by our fantastic Merlot, and strengthened by our now-sold-out Rutherford Cabernet. Entry No. 008, “Paragon” is truly a perfect example of a Right Bank style blend, done with California style. It harnesses a mixed basket of red and black fruits with plum, mulberry, fig, and wild blackberries at its focused core. Shaved dark chocolate, dried tobacco, and dusty soil come into view as it expands with great mid-palate depth and weight. It all joins together in superb balance, cascading in linear fashion toward a fantastic finish.

Open and ready to enjoy now, but we expect this should evolve into something even more extraordinary over the years. Unlike most of our previous entires, this doesn’t anchor to any particular offering from a producer, but you could expect to pay $100-150 easily for something on this level. If not more.

95 points – Decanter

“Achival’s Paragon bottling nods to Bordeaux’s Right Bank with a blend of 48% Cabernet Franc, 31% Merlot, and 20% Cabernet Sauvignon. Here, Cabernet Franc takes center stage, much like Château Cheval Blanc—an outlier for its unusually high proportion of the grape. Enough of the history lesson: get this wine in your glass and revel in its rich, dark-toned fruit, opulent dark-chocolate character, and plum-and-fig nuances. Superfine, layered tannins frame the palate, while elegant tobacco notes weave through to a long, juicy finish, lifted by mineral freshness and anchored by refined tannins and gentle acidity.”