2013 Anatomy No. 1 Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley 750 ml

Redux: Michel Rolland Protege’s Win-Win

In the last six months, we’ve offered Wine Access clients two rare opportunities to buy a fantastic wine while helping gifted winemaker Philippe Langner recover from last October’s devastating fires. So many of you purchased his Hesperian 2008 and 2012 vintages that Langner is back again with an exclusive deal on the 2013 Hesperian Anatomy No. 1 Cabernet Sauvignon from Napa. Here’s a friendly reminder that 2013 was Robert Parker’s “game-changer” vintage from—the “greatest vintage I’ve tasted in 37 years,” he said. From Langner, who got his start at the Rothschild family’s Château Clarke in Bordeaux, it’s a marvelous, plush, silky, and rich rendition of this classic vintage. To recoup costs and continue rebuilding his home and office, Philippe has offered us a special price on this 2013 Anatomy No. 1. While his wines routinely sell for up to $80 at the winery, today’s price of $19.99 offers another incredible opportunity, both to give and to receive. Just 100 cases.

Philippe Langer cut his teeth at Rothschild-held Château Clarke in the Médoc, where he worked alongside Michel Rolland, the man responsible for some of the world’s highest-scoring and notoriously rare clarets and Cabernets. Langer then returned to California—he earned his degree at U.C. Davis—spending a decade as head viticulturist and winemaker at Napa’s Sullivan Winery, while simultaneously developing Hesperian. In 2010 Philippe left Sullivan, settling into Hesperian full-time at his current 14-acre plot on Atlas Peak.

The majority of the wines in Philippe’s boutique portfolio retail at $80-$100 and above. These are single-vineyard gems from his estate vineyards that have impressed the likes of Robert Parker and more. With Anatomy No. 1, Philippe sought to employ the same world-class touch, extreme care, and attention to detail to produce “a delicious Napa Cabernet Sauvignon at an affordable price.” As we see it, he has exceeded all expectations. The 2013 Anatomy No. 1, sourced from several prime Napa Valley sites, some farmed by Langner himself, is ripe and smooth, loaded with unctuous dark fruits, and is just beginning to divulge some of the bottle-aged complexity we’ve been anticipating of this knock-out vintage.

It’s true, last year’s fires set Langner back, but equally true is that his firm commitment to producing delicious wines of great purity, detail, and longevity never wavered. Here’s another win-win-win opportunity for Wine Access clients; great wine at a great price and a great boost to a winemaker rising up from the ashes.

Jonathan Cristaldi

Editor-in-Chief, Wine Access

Contributing Writer, Food & Wine