Stags’ Leap Winery 2019 Stags’ Leap Napa Limited Edition Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon

Stags Leap Wine Cellars stunned the world in 1976 when its 1973 S.L.V. Cabernet Sauvignon bested some of Bordeauxs first-growth wines in a tasting in Paris. It was the winerys first commercial vintage, a wine produced from young, three-year-old vines. While the victory over the French in The Judgment of Paris continues to be hailed throughout the world and the winery is still humbled by the achievement Stags Leap Wine Cellars enters its golden anniversary year with a commitment to producing more complex and age-worthy wines. No resting on laurels, no autopilot, no complacency, but rather a drive to ensure the next 50 years are even more glorious than the first 50.A step back in time puts Stags Leap Wine Cellars current and future plans in perspective. The estate was founded in 1970 with the purchase of orchard land in what is now the Stags Leap District AVA in southeastern Napa Valley. Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot grapes replaced the prunes and walnuts, and the winery was built in 1972. A wine was made there in that year, but it was the 1973 S.L.V. Cabernet Sauvignon that impressed and shocked a panel of experts on French wine. In the 1976 Paris Tasting, a blind tasting, they chose S.L.V as the finest red wine in the group, without knowing its provenance. The outcome brought international recognition to the infant Stags Leap Wine Cellars, the nascent Napa Valley wine region, and the entire American wine industry and put all on a path to worldwide renown.

Blend: Cabernet Sauvignon;Malbec;Petit Verdot;Cabernet Franc

Alcohol percentage: 14.3

Tasting Notes

An intriguing bouquet opens with pronounced aromas of ripe blackberry and red cherry, underpinned by perfumed floral and savory herbal notes of dried rose petal, potpourri, sage, and mint. The wine is full-bodied with beautiful texture and depth on the palate, with multi-layered finesse and crowd-pleasing drinkability. On the palate, juicy cassis, blackberry, and red cherry are supported by notes of crushed red rose, tea leaf, and chocolate, giving this Cabernet a beguiling plushness and warmth. Finishing smooth and dry, with soft tannins and a lingering perfume of cassis, violet and dark chocolate.