‘Insignia’ Is Outta the Park

Back in the 1950s, the owner of the Chicago White Sox installed an exploding scoreboard in Comiskey Park. Whenever a Sox player hit a home run, it would go off.

To many baseball purists, it was just one more of Bill Veeck’s loony assaults on the character of the game. But to a kid, it was a thing of wonder--screaming alarms, flashing lights, skyrockets, the smell of gunpowder.

Every once in a while--not nearly often enough--I come across a wine that goes off like that scoreboard. Such a wine is the 1994 Joseph Phelps “Insignia.”

Judging by a recent barrel tasting of more than 40 California Cabernets, the 1994 vintage is the finest so far in the string of exceptional years the state has experienced in the 1990s. It has the potential to rival such legendary vintages as 1985, 1978 and 1970.

It is risky to go out so far on a limb with a recommendation based on a barrel sample, but the raw material in the 1994 is the finest I have encountered since tasting the 1989 Chateau Haut-Brion out of the barrel.

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Even amid the abundance of excellent wines on show at this tasting, the “Insignia” stood out. The concentrated cassis aroma, the depth and multiple layers of flavor, the sheer intensity and length were beyond excellence.

“Insignia,” which made its debut in 1974, was the first top-rank California red wine to go by a proprietary name without a varietal designation such as Cabernet Sauvignon or Merlot (it is a combination of those two and Cabernet Franc).

Later would come the better-known Opus One, Dominus and the hordes of wines that adopted the name “meritage,” but “Insignia” pioneered the concept.

There was a dip in the quality of “Insignia” during the late 1980s, but it has come roaring back since 1990 to reclaim its place among California’s finest reds.

Well-heeled collectors will want to lay in a case. Beginners should stretch their budgets to procure a few bottles.

While they’re at it, they might as well invest in a few other 1994s, some of which might eventually give the Phelps a run for its money. The long 1994 growing season, which avoided both excessive heat and excessive rain, was good to many wine growers throughout the state, especially in the Napa Valley.

Among the potential 1994 Cabernet Sauvignon superstars are Dunn “Howell Mountain,” La Jota’s “12th Anniversary,” Ridge “Montebello,” Shafer “Hillside Select,” Simi “Reserve” and Spottswoode.

A mention also should go to the 1994 Steltzner Cabernet Sauvignon that has gorgeous raspberry aromas so reminiscent of a Co^te-Rotie.

Meanwhile, Matanzas Creek has produced a 1994 Merlot that is a strong contender as the finest wine ever produced in California from this varietal.

The list of merely excellent performers in 1994 runs on a bit. There’s Carmenet’s “Moon Mountain Estate” Red, Clos Pegase “Hommage,” Dunn “Napa Valley” Cabernet, Elyse “Morisoli Vineyard” Cabernet, Fisher “Coach Insignia” Cabernet, Peter Michael “Les Pavots” Cabernet, Pine Ridge “Howell Mountain” Cabernet, Ravenswood “Pickberry Red,” Vine Cliff Cabernet and ZD Cabernet.

Add to that list two excellent Merlots: the Pine Ridge “Carneros” and Ravenswood “Sangiacomo.”

At barrel tastings, I use a simplified 1-through-5-point scale. What you see listed here are only the 5s--a tribute to the strength of the vintage.