2012 Bryant Family Vineyard Bettina Proprietary Red Wine Napa Valley 750 ml

Bryant Estate is one of the few wineries that elicits agreement among wine collectors around the world: The name evokes the absolute pinnacle of Napa Valley winemaking, and a single bottle will sparkle as the crown jewel of any cellar. And today, we’re thrilled to bring you a library release from the Bryant Estate Cellars on Pritchard Hill.

Bryant Estate’s unimpeachable quality isn’t the only reason we’re as excited about this offer as any we’ve had the privilege to send. It’s also because of the rarity and exclusivity—you don’t just stroll down to the local wine shop and pick up a bottle of Bryant, let alone a perfectly aged bottle from an outstanding vintage. But because of our relationship with Bryant, we’ve secured a small allocation of the 2012 Bettina Proprietary Red for Wine Access members. 

Bryant makes what Robert Parker calls one of Napa Valley’s “flagship Cabernet Sauvignons,” and these jewels from the exquisite 2012 vintage will cost up to $2,000 on the auction block, if you can find them. Today on Wine Access, they can be yours for a quarter of that, with perfect provenance guaranteed, as always. 

The 2012 Bryant Estate wines come from the 21st vintage of a winery that turned heads from the beginning: Robert Parker advised Cabernet lovers to get on the mailing list of this “reference point” Cabernet after tasting just the second vintage, and wrote (in his perfect 100-point review of the ‘97) that Bryant “might well be one of the wines that redefines greatness in Cabernet Sauvignon.”

From Parker’s pen to fruition. Bryant is now one of the most revered estates in Napa Valley, and it’s not hard to see why: Their talent is the wine world’s answer to USA Basketball’s 1992 Dream Team. They’ve been advised from the beginning by Michel Rolland, the masterful consultant whose name has become shorthand for world-class Bordeaux style wines, and world-renowned viticulturist David Abreu (Colgin, Staglin, Araujo, Screaming Eagle, among many others) who has been ushering their fruit from the vineyard for two decades. 

The 2012 Bettina is a Cabernet-dominant Left Bank blend harvested from three of David Abreu’s stellar vineyard sites. The 2012 shows a gorgeous brick color around the rim, and with a developing nose of blue and black fruits, forest floor, cedar spice, and a beautiful all-around integration. With a 96-point score from the Advocate, which called it “full-bodied and opulent” with “Margaux-like femininity,” this is an homage to Bordeaux that belongs right next to the First Growths and California cult Cabernets in your collection.. 

These wines are not just the product of peerless skill, but priceless terroir. The grapes for Bettina are sourced from three of David Abreu’s pristine vineyards: Las Posadas above the fog line on Howell Mountain, Thorevilos between the St. Helena and Howell Mountain AVAs, and the heart of David’s domaine, the seminal Madrona Ranch. The combination of earth—the red soils of Las Posadas, pebbly tufa of Thorevilos, and the dark clays of Madrona—plus the varied elevations provide the Bordeaux-style blend an impeccable balance of Valley influences. 

One stately Left Bank-style blend from the summit of Napa Valley winemaking. We’re thrilled to bring it to you, and even more excited for you to enjoy this incomparable wine.