2016 Cresta Velia Cabernet Sauvignon Eagle Summit Vineyard Howell Mountain Napa Valley 750 ml

We ascended Howell Mountain to meet with the winemaker of a certain world-famous cult Cabernet, but we came down with something even more irresistible: a small-production, critical-darling, under-the-radar Howell Mountain Cab hand-crafted by one of the winemakers behind $300+ collectors’ items—but costing just a fraction.

You may not know his name (yet), but John Giannini has been standing behind some of the top-scoring, collector-coveted releases of the past decade: cult-level Cabernets from Schrader, Maybach, and Outpost, where he’s still the assistant winemaker. For a decade, John has been crafting these wines alongside Thomas Rivers Brown, soaking up the kind of knowledge and technique that one acquires working with one of the world’s most in-demand winemakers. 

He’s obviously been paying attention: One sip of John’s 96-point Cresta Velia Cabernet Sauvignon evokes the kind of Thomas Rivers Brown-made Cabernets that collectors pay $300+ per bottle for, if they can get them at all. With layers of red and black berries, crushed violets, and graphite, it’s a beautifully elegant and robust example of Napa Valley mountain Cabernet that will leave you in pure bliss—until you see the two-digit price, and slip into the best kind of sticker shock.

Normally, we approach our mountain Cabernets warily, prepared to age them for five to eight years to let their formidable tannins soften. But Giannini crafted this 2016 to be beautifully approachable on the table now. A former chef, he expertly aged the wine in French oak and bottled it unfined and unfiltered so its fruit tones are vibrant and open on the palate—and amazing alongside anything grilled over an open flame. 

“For my brand, this is definitely the best we’ve made,” Giannini told us over a steak, as he swirled a big glass of Cresta Velia and revealed the major difference between his winemaking and chef styles: “In the food world, if you have a bad night, you can get after it again the next day and really fine tune.” he said. “But you only get one shot a year with a harvest.”

Safe to say that John would be thrilled if the world judged him on his 2016s. It was a phenomenal year in Napa Valley, and he expertly ushered Mother Nature’s blessings into this bottle. John works just 20 rows at the 1,900-foot Eagle Summit Vineyard on Howell Mountain, where he gives each cluster the white-glove treatment that produces power and finesse—a perfect balance that makes his 2016 Cabernet delicious now, yet able to age for another decade like the finest of Howell Mountain.

Good luck with keeping your hands off it for that long. In 2016, John hit a bullseye with his one shot, and it’s captured perfectly in this bottle.