Winemaker Notes
Professional Ratings
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James Suckling
This shows lots of ripe dark and blue fruit on the nose, together with some leafy character. Notes of spices, cedar wood and walnuts, too. Medium-to full-bodied with firm tannins and a fresh, juicy-fruit profile. Polished and smooth with an array of succulent berries and blue flowers in the aftertaste. Drinkable now, but better in two or three years. Try after 2024.
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Wine Enthusiast
This is a well-balanced red with small amounts of other varieties like Merlot. Spicy, it shows well-integrated oak and tannin within a taut, elegant and lengthy palate of blueberry and black currant.
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Wine Spectator
A sleek, polished style, with cassis and plum notes driving through, carried by a graphite spine and backed by tobacco, briar and savory notes. Drink now.
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
The 2019 Cabernet Sauvignon includes small proportions of Merlot, Cabernet Franc, Petit Verdot and Malbec and was aged 16 months in 44% new French oak. For entry-level Napa, it's a solid effort, marrying ripe cherries and hints of cassis with gentle notes of sage and cedar. Medium to full-bodied, it's soft enough to drink now, yet it shows enough velvety tannins to age at least through 2030. Nicely done.
One of the most prestigious wines of the world capable of great power and grace, Napa Valley Cabernet is a leading force in the world of fine, famous, collectible red wine. Today the Napa Valley and Cabernet Sauvignon are so intrinsically linked that it is difficult to discuss one without the other. But it wasn’t until the 1970s that this marriage came to light; sudden international recognition rained upon Napa with the victory of the Stag’s Leap Wine Cellars 1973 Cabernet Sauvignon in the 1976 Judgement of Paris.
Cabernet Sauvignon undoubtedly dominates Napa Valley today, covering half of the land under vine, commanding the highest prices per ton and earning the most critical acclaim. Cabernet Sauvignon’s structure, acidity, capacity to thrive in multiple environs and ability to express nuances of vintage make it perfect for Napa Valley where incredible soil and geographical diversity are found and the climate is perfect for grape growing. Within the Napa Valley lie many smaller sub-AVAs that express specific characteristics based on situation, slope and soil—as a perfect example, Rutherford’s famous dust or Stags Leap District's tart cherry flavors.