2018 Delightful and Strange The Reserve Proprietary Red Wine Napa Valley 750 ml

With over 30 perfect five-star ratings and a trove of member reviews like, “All who have tried it enjoyed it. Have already ordered more,” Delightful & Strange is one of the most beloved proprietary blends in Wine Access history. And when we set out to top it, we knew what we had to do: Go even lower. 

Packing the same star-studded pedigree as its five-star predecessors, drawing from multiple 96-99-point winery sources whose own releases command prices up to $200 per bottle, the 2018 Reserve delivers the dark-fruited elegance, muscled power, and wild complexity of Napa’s finest—for the best price ever on a Delightful and Strange release.

The decision to make less of this 2018 Reserve in order to deliver it at the best price ever was made by our own Robert Emery, the ace blender behind Delightful and Strange. Two years ago, he began making the rounds to put the 2018 vintage together. A barrel-tasting high up on Conn Valley Road in St. Helena yielded the midnight-hued Petit Verdot—the source of this wine’s broad-shouldered boldness. Deep-fruited Cabernet Sauvignon and Cabernet Franc came from two decorated estates in the heart of the Valley. A dollop of Merlot came from a 100-point estate vineyard, and Robert secured a tiny sliver of Malbec from a family at the very pinnacle of Napa winegrowing. 

It’s an all-star blend that would make any 100-point winemaker jealous. Showing juicy blueberry, pomegranate, and blackberry mingling with freshly tilled earth, mocha, star anise, and five-spice, it’s big, but not heavy. It’s luscious and ripe, yet vibrant and fresh. 

Because of Robert’s deep relationships throughout the Valley—and the fact that many growers had extra fruit to offer—he was able to put together this stunning proprietary red at an exceptional price. The only catch: The entire production only amounted to eight barrels of wine. 

Robert had other options to pump up the production, of course, but none of them would allow him to maintain the exceptional level of quality without driving up the price. So, despite the finance team at Wine Access HQ wanting more volume, Robert and his desire for more value won out.

It was a backyard barbecue hosted by Robert and attended by our CEO that sealed the deal. Next to a chargrilled ribeye, the steakhouse-ready 2018 absolutely stole the show. “At our current price,” said Robert. “You can afford to throw another steak on the grill.”

Case closed.