2019 The Messenger Cabernet Sauvignon Mountain Reserve Napa Valley 750 ml

The legendary Howell Mountain vineyard behind this NDA-shrouded bottle is so recognizable and famous that winemaker Rob McDonald wouldn’t even whisper a word of description about it.

“If I tell you anything at all, you’ll know the site,” he said, shaking his head. “It’s a well-known vineyard.” We scanned our mental map of Howell Mountain. There are only a handful of distinctive, cult-level vineyards we could guess at with just a few details—100-point plots like W.S. Keyes or, just below the AVA, Ecotone (Thorevilos)—breeding grounds for single-vineyard collectibles and structured, dazzlingly intense Cab.

A long-time veteran of the California wine industry, Rob managed to get access to a small lot of grapes from this vineyard through some right-time, right-place serendipity. In addition to running a small library of his own labels, he was the founder of Old Bridge Cellars—an import business for some of the most revered estates in Australia, including d’Arenberg, Leeuwin Estate, and Jasper Hill. When it comes to New World opulence, he’s one of the best barometers of excellence in the country. And he has a truffle hound’s nose for scoring hidden-gem fruit.

The 2019 Messenger Mountain Reserve generously showcases aromas of crushed violet, cassis, and plum, all wrapped in a layer of savory herb and cocoa. The mouthfeel is lush and velvety, with dark fruit in the core—there’s no way to achieve this sumptuous fruit concentration and detailed structure without first-class terroir and meticulous farming.

This top-secret vineyard is temperamental, so each vintage can bring unexpected surpluses or drops in volume. In 2019, the extra difference went into Rob’s hands—and turned into one of our phenomenal Napa Valley Cab deals of the year.