Icon’s 40th vintage: “Pure electricity!”
- 98+ pts Wine Advocate98+ pts RPWA
- 98+ pts Jeb Dunnuck98+ pts Jeb Dunnuck
- 99 pts The Wine Independent99 pts TWI
- 99 pts James Suckling99 pts JS
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2021 Spottswoode Vineyard and Winery Cabernet Sauvignon St. Helena 750 ml
| $285 | per bottle | |
- Curated by unrivaled experts
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- Get credited back if a wine fails to impress
The Quintessential St. Helena Cabernet
Spottswoode defines Cabernet from northern Napa Valley's prestigious St. Helena AVA. Over four decades, the estate has built their reputation on some of the most regal and ageworthy Cabernets made in California—yet their 2021 Estate Cabernet Sauvignon somehow exceeds expectations.
Boasting two 99-point scores—one from James Suckling, the other from former Robert Parker Wine Advocate boss Lisa Perrotti-Brown—this is as impressive and classic as Napa Valley Cabernet gets. Inky and deep, sumptuous and full-bodied, built on structured but silky tannins, it's a blockbuster in every sense of the word.
Since the winery's founding in 1982—exactly a century after the estate itself was established—Spottswoode has become an icon of Napa Valley and St. Helena in particular: "When I think of what St. Helena Cabernet Sauvignon should be," wrote Antonio Galloni, "I often think of Spottswoode. The wines are simply classic."
Located on the western edge of St. Helena, the winery's Texas-shaped (minus the panhandle) vineyard is dominated by organically and biodynamically farmed Cabernet Sauvignon, with a bit of Cabernet Franc, Petit Verdot, and Sauvignon Blanc. It's a picture-perfect site for grape growing: The alluvial clay-loam soils provide superb drainage, while the cool breezes that pass through the Mayacamas Range promote even ripening, even in the up-valley heat.
The 2021 Estate Cabernet consists of 87% Cabernet Sauvignon, lifted by a brushstroke 9% Cabernet Franc and intensified by 4% Petit Verdot. After 20 months in 62% new French and Hungarian oak barrels, it's an incredibly impressive wine—surely one of the best of Napa Valley's 2021 season.