2019 Radio Silence Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley 750 ml

No dialogue. No music. Film’s greatest heist scene passes with almost no sound. For nearly 30 minutes, the characters of Rififi execute their meticulous plan in near silence, nothing but glances, nods, and the tapping of their chisels. Every second that passes ratchets up the suspense... and makes the payoff that much more satisfying. 

As a viewer, all you can (and should) do is sit back and appreciate the brilliance—the no-detail-overlooked, meditative brilliance—until the riches are in the bag. Today, Wine Access members are the ones taking home a treasure, and it’s every bit as thrilling. 

When we introduced our Notify Me feature in early 2021, masses of members flooded it with requests for Radio Silence, making it our #1 most-demanded wine—topping iconic Napa Cabs, Bordeaux legends, everything. And today’s 2019 Radio Silence puts an exclamation point on all that anticipation. It’s a bold and immensely satisfying bottle from an estate whose Cabs command up to $350, and it’s just $45.

Because we needed the 2019 rendition to be perfectly executed, we descended into our own radio silence, and we emerge today with a reward that’s as spectacular as its predecessor. It hails from an estate that Robert Parker has praised for its “profound” Cabernet—one that he ranks among the most "powerful” in Napa Valley, and whose wines have been served at presidential state dinners. Trust us, we’d tantalize you with the name if it weren’t for the quarter-inch-thick NDA in our file cabinet. 

So we’ll just say this: The tiny, family-run Rutherford vineyard that serves as the wine’s backbone is walking distance from Caymus and Frog’s Leap, and produces some of Napa’s most coveted Cabernets. Rumor has it that Hollywood A-listers use numerous credit cards to get around the winery’s strict bottle limit in order to score the estate’s most in-demand bottling, an icon that goes for four digits per three-pack.

We’ve got that same celebrity-captivating terroir right here, but you don’t need multiple lines of credit to get it.

The 2019 Radio Silence is a paragon of Valley floor muscle, deftly balanced by silky dark fruit. Ripe berries and plum give way to dark chocolate and baking spices on the palate, supported by dusty tannins. This is peak Napa Valley, delivering all the opulence and polish that have entrenched its source among Napa’s elite and made Radio Silence our #1 most-requested wine. 

The talented team that tends this immaculate sliver of Napa terroir has followed organic and biodynamic principles for decades, long before that was a trend. Rooted in Rutherford’s well-draining alluvial loam and sand, these vines put forth richly concentrated Cabernet with an incredible depth of flavor. Hand-harvested and laid down for a 20-month rest in oak, the resulting wine is a revelation, and a huge payoff for the members who have been eagerly anticipating this release.

And at a price like today’s, a case-buy is a total heist.