Single-vineyard Napa Cab, 70% off!
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2019 En Passant Cabernet Sauvignon Stags Crossing Reserve Napa Valley 750 ml
- Curated by unrivaled experts
- Choose your delivery date
- Temperature controlled shipping options
- Get credited back if a wine fails to impress
King for a Pawn
In chess, the en passant move permits a bold, rarely seen method of pawn capture that bypasses the usual rules, often taking less experienced players by surprise—and chess is a good analogy for a lot of the work we do sourcing rare wines, exclusives, and best-in-the-nation deals. It definitely describes the odyssey we went through to score the 2019 En Passant Cabernet.
Sourced entirely from a single blue-chip vineyard on the border of the Stags Leap appellation, the wine hails from terroir that has regularly yielded best-in-vintage scores. It’s a top-shelf reserve release that delivers a voluptuous, soft texture loaded with lush fruit and spice cradled in powerful, well-structured tannins. It was treated to white-glove care in the cellar, aged in 100% French oak.
This deal came about thanks to our connection with the En Passant winemaker, who’s asked to remain anonymous. He’s a friend of the team who often drops in on the tasting panel when we’re sampling Napa Cabs to share insights on the growing season and trade trends.
We knew our En Passant friend was looking for a high-end source of Napa Cabernet for his 2019 Reserve bottling. We also knew of another friend with elite-level vineyard connections who needed to make room in the cellar. So at a harvest party last fall, we made introductions between our acquaintances, huddled over a bottle of blanc de blancs Champagne, and got the involved parties to the finish line and a handshake deal.
A potent, lavishly rich Napa Cab from a vintage rated 97 points by Wine Spectator, just 300 cases of this 2019 En Passant were produced.