Taken Wine Co. spotlight
Josh Phelps, co-founder of Taken Wine Co., is on camera with sommelier Amanda McCrossin tasting Taken Red, the Napa bottle he built with Carlo Trinchero.
The market on this bottle
Wine-Searcher tracks this 2019 Taken Wine Co. Red Napa Valley across the open market. Their published U.S. low is $21.40 and the average is $36.11. Our slash is $22.00.
2019 Taken Wine Co. Red Napa Valley, USA
Josh Phelps and Carlo Trinchero's Napa red, Cabernet frame with Zinfandel warmth, a 2019 you can open at twenty-two dollars.
The 2019 Taken Red is 43 percent Cabernet Sauvignon with Zinfandel, Merlot, Malbec, and Pinot Noir: blackberry, plum, cocoa, black olive, now $22.
A next-generation Napa red with real family roots
Carlo Trinchero grew up in the Trinchero family. Josh Phelps grew up watching his father Chris make Dominus. In 2010 they bottled Taken for friends. The 2019 is still that idea: Cabernet for frame, Zinfandel for warmth, Merlot for ease, a Napa red you open with a burger or a prime rib without a speech.
The house
Taken Wine Co. is Josh Phelps and Carlo Trinchero, two St. Helena kids who started a label because every other name was already taken.
The wine
Cabernet-led Napa red with Zinfandel, Merlot, Malbec, and Pinot. Plush tannin, cocoa, a savory olive turn.
The scores
Natalie MacLean 92. James Suckling 91. Wine-Searcher aggregate 90.
The drinker
Blackberry and cocoa first. Open 20 minutes ahead. Serve near 62 F. Prime rib or a smashed burger.
Plush fruit, cocoa dust, then a savory little turn
The winery note writes tobacco, baking spice, and cassis on the nose, then blackberry, dark cherry, ripe plum, and pomegranate. James Suckling found cherries, olives, and dusty cocoa. Natalie MacLean poured it with prime rib.
A generous Napa red year now in an easy drinking window. The 2019 has seven years in bottle. The fruit is still plush. The cocoa and olive notes have settled.
Blackberry, dark cherry, ripe plum, currant, dried strawberry, cassis.
Medium to full, plush tannin, 14.5% ABV, juicy enough for a grill night.
Cocoa, black olive, dried herbs. Open 20 minutes ahead. Serve 60 to 64 F.
Cabernet frame, Zinfandel warmth, Merlot ease
The 2019 is not a textbook Bordeaux blend. Cabernet Sauvignon sets the frame. Zinfandel adds Napa warmth. Merlot rounds the middle. Malbec and Pinot Noir fill in color, spice, and lift. That is why the wine drinks as blackberry and cocoa with an olive turn instead of a single Cabernet note.
This is a useful Napa red, not a cellar monument. Plush tannin, sweet spice, enough savory edge to handle a crusted roast.
Serve near 62 F. Prime rib and a hamburger are both honest pairings.
Two Napa families, one label they could actually name
Every name they wanted was taken. So Taken Wine Co. became the name, and the path-home mark on the bottle is the two friends walking back to St. Helena.
Carlo Trinchero is a third-generation member of the Trinchero family, Napa vintners since 1948. Josh Phelps is the son of Chris Phelps, who made Dominus.
They released 100 cases of 2010 Cabernet-Merlot for friends. Trinchero Family Estates later took the brands into distribution.
The 2019 still tastes like that brief: Napa fruit, plush tannin, a bottle you open without waiting for a special occasion.
Grill night, not a white tablecloth
Taken wants browned beef, salt, and a little smoke. Prime rib or a smashed burger both work.
Two plates. One prime rib from the grill. One heavenly hamburger. Both can take a plush Napa red.
Open 20 minutes ahead. Serve 60 to 64 F. A short decant is enough. Char does the rest.
Prime Rib from the Grill
Crust, beef fat, and slow heat pull blackberry, cocoa, and savory herb out of the 2019.
Why it works: Protein and salt soften the tannin. Smoke echoes tobacco and baking spice.
View Recipe for grilled prime rib (opens in a new tab)
Heavenly Hamburger
Natalie MacLean called this a heavenly hamburger wine. A smashed burger is the honest test.
Why it works: Fat and char meet plush tannin. Pickle and onion lift the olive-herb finish.
View Recipe for a smashed hamburger (opens in a new tab)Put this Napa red in the cart
Josh Phelps and Carlo Trinchero, Natalie MacLean 92, a 2019 you can actually open. Twenty-two dollars.
Put it in the cart. This is Napa red for a grill night, a weeknight roast, and a six-pack that does not need a cellar speech.
