Lot 943 2020 Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon
If you ask any winemaker to help you choose a Napa Cabernet from the 2020 vintage, they’ll tell you it’s an easy choice. “Buy and enjoy every single 2020 you can get your hands on,” they’ll say. Why? It’s the first vintage in about 50 years where half of the valley’s wineries didn’t produce a Cabernet.
The reason is simple—if grapes were still hanging on the vine after the Glass Fire erupted at the very end of September, those grapes were goners. But for wineries whose Cabernet grapes were in warmer areas, where ripening occurred early, and grapes were harvested before that fire, they not only got lucky—they made some great wine.
The long and short of it is we got really, really lucky. We knocked on so many winery doors and were told over and over to come back in 2021. But then, we got a phone call from a familiar friend who learned the winery owner of his iconic winery wasn’t going to bottle any wine in 2020, and did we want his Cabernet grapes? The answer was a resounding “YES!” and later that day, we took it all.
That wine became Lot 943 2020 Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon. It’s a Cabernet that would have sold for over $100 from the source winery but is yours for just $38. Opaque dark ruby-purple, offering a heady mix of black currants, cassis, dried mint, dark chocolate, and cigar box. It’s a full-bodied Cabernet with dark, brambly fruits, a kiss of mocha, and a framing of cedar and oak that builds texture. It has to be paired alongside our best strip steak, burger, or Poulet au Porto. It’s also one of our favorite reds to sip while reading a great book of fiction or biography. Pull up a chair and join us.
Watch as Chris Lafleur, Sommeliers Creed for Cameron Hughes, and Katy Long, Director of International Wines for VWE, walk us through a tasting and discuss this exciting Napa Valley Cab release.
Video Highlights:
- 00:00 Introduction
- 00:19 Lot 943 Information
- 00:32 Napa Valley, Cabs, pyrazine
- 01:20 Color and Legs
- 01:51 The Nose of this Napa Valley Cab
- 02:20 The Taste
- 03:26 Where does this Napa Cabernet fit in Your Cellar
- 04:08 Wine Pairing
Video Transcript:
Chris
Hi, everyone. Welcome back to the tasting room. This is Chris Lafleur. I’m here with Katy Long and we’re going to be tasting Lot 943. What are we tasting today, Katy?Katy
I am so excited. Lot 943 is a Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon. Oh, I know, right? Yeah. So Napa Valley is so known for Cabernet Sauvignon, it is the single most planted variety in this appellation and for great reason. It just grows like gangbusters here.Chris
It’s ubiquitous. When you think about Napa Valley, you can’t really not talk about Cabernet Sauvignon. That’s everybody’s bread and butter.Katy
So Cabernet Sauvignon, why do we love it? Why do you love it?Chris
Why do I love it? Well, I think that’s a very complex grape. It’s got remarkable blackcurrant, which are always very expressive on the nose. It’s also got a nice hint of Pyrazine, which is that green pepper kind of grassy smell. And it translates differently for every great. But I think Cabernet Sauvignon, it translates the best in really good examples.Chris
I get a little bit of either eucalyptus or a touch of spearmint, and I think it helps round out the aromatics of a beautiful, elegant wine.Katy
And those are such qualities that make it happy here. So we’ve got the California sunshine, we’ve got ripeness, we’ve got warmth. We also have these cooling evening breezes, that kind of roll in off of the ocean. So we’re finding balance, balance to grow great grapes. That was a tongue twister.Chris
Yeah, but we love good balance. So here we go. Let’s have a look at this in the glass. Oh, my gosh, That’s gorgeous.Katy
Look at that color.Chris
That is more opaque than I thought it was going to be.Katy
Wow. So this is tells me it’s a youthful wine. We’re looking at that beautiful ruby. Really kind of purple deep core. What else?Chris
Well, I think it kind of tells you right away it’s Cabernet Sauvignon because there’s very few grapes that you’re going to get this level of extraction.Katy
Does it tell you it’s Cabernet Sauvignon?Chris
Yeah. What’s that, cap? Frank Rubino All right, Cabernet Sauvignon. And it smells like it, too, right away. So on the nose, huge hit of black currant like we talked about, you called it. Yeah, it’s right there. So it’s leaping out of the glass.Katy
Just dark fruit flavors that’s speaking to the brightness of the Napa Valley. That hint of maybe dried herbs, that pyrazine quality.Chris
Yeah, the pyrazine kind of wraps, like I said, like a little bit of mint. And I think there’s a touch of dark chocolate on here as well.Katy
It’s like a little hug.Chris
Yeah, it’s got so much going on that you just want to sit with this one for a little while.Katy
Shall we give this one a taste?Chris
Oh, we sure will.Katy
Awesome. Wow.Chris
What is that? That is so good. My God.Katy
Trying to make me spit it out?Chris
I was a little bit. Yeah, almost Got you. Next time I will. It’s incredible. The palate is great. It’s really long. There’s great tannins coating the top of my tongue, kind of chalky. And then also very. A little bit coarse, but not aggressive. It’s a myriad of stuff.Katy
There’s so much going on in this wine, so that dark bramble fruit flavor, I think at a kiss of mocha, a little bit of that minerality, just a framing of oak providing some of that vanilla texture. But it sits on the palate, it glides across the palate, let’s say. Yeah, it just it’s got plenty of body, but it’s going directionally towards the finish.Chris
Oh yeah, There is all the hallmarks here that say this is going to last for a while. Like there’s great acidity, giving it a little lively flavor, a bevy of different flavors and a great concentration of fruit, a lot of tannin that’s going to reduce micro oxidation. There’s everything we can have here to say This belongs in your cellar.Chris
Several of the bottles lying down, several of them standing up for you to drink whatever you want.Katy
Yeah, I think this is a wine that I would want with friends. Maybe take it to a dinner party or even just a casual gathering. This is one of our countdown wines for fall. So as we eagerly await the lot 950. This is a special wine, and it really stands out in the glass as having a good structure, a lot of intensity, but really well-balanced.Katy
I mean, the alcohol is kind of high on this, but it doesn’t stand out.Chris
Yeah, like when I saw the alcohol in the back here, which is 15%, by the way, it did not at all speak to me that that’s where this one was. This feels very well integrated and very balanced. So what are you pairing this with, Katy?Katy
Oh, aside from good friends and good company, I think a protein that has a lot of umami, maybe some fats. I think this would be lovely for some of the fall and winter fare. But what are you to pair with?Chris
Oh, I can already see it in my head. I’m at the white tablecloth. I’ve got the nice big white plate. I’ve got a strip loin that’s got grill marks perfectly. I’ve got some grilled asparagus to go alongside this and some garlic buttery mashed potatoes. That’s what this wine is for me. But you don’t have to be constrained to my taste.Chris
You can have this with lobster. You can have this with a barbecue. You can have this on your own while your kids are yelling at you that they want more candy. That’s a great reason to have some. It’s such a versatile wine. You can have it whenever you like.Katy
So it sounds like you’re doing the cooking. How about if I bring the wine and.Chris
Come on over? That sounds great. Okay, I’ll get the steaks on the grill.Katy
So we know where it’s going to sit in our cellar. But at home, probably a few years time, aging in your cellar. But if you’re like me, don’t wait. Why defer pleasure? I’m going to open my bottle today.Chris
Absolutely. And this is going to taste great whenever you open it. And as you lay it down, you’re going to get to see how it evolves over time. It’s going to be incredible. So I think we should go finish this and get some steaks.Katy
Doesn’t sound like a bad idea.Chris
And I will see you at the next class.Katy
And cheers. Until then.