2016 Editorial Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley (archived) 750 ml

One of our good friends in Napa is among the top wine journalists in the trade, with bylines in every major publication you can think of. His palate is impeccable, his charm infectious, and his Rolodex of blue-chip connections in the wine industry deeply enviable.

The other week he sent us an unmarked bottle of 2016 Napa Cabernet that set off fireworks in the tasting room. Dense, brambly aromatics that unfolded notes of black tea, licorice, menthol, soil, and plum as our glass sat. Rich, mouth-coating tannins, a plush and precise black fruit core, and the kind of vivid acidity that makes you want to take another sip before you’ve even finished swallowing. What was it and how much of it could we get? Radio silence. A week later, a one-line email: “How much do you want?”

First we needed to know more about this mystery Cab and how he’d come by it. Put it in writing, we said. Since he’s the one who does this for a living, we decided to copy and paste the email he sent us below (with a few redactions), detailing the classic adventure behind how today’s offer came to be. Crafted from some of the finest fruit in the valley, at $55 it puts most of the competition to shame. This is the kind of rare wine access that our name promises.

Vanessa,

On the morning of 5/23 I met two friends, a distributor and a well-known viticulturist, by the bike entrance to the Pope Street Bridge. As we were strapping on our shoes and helmets, one of them got a text and asked if a friend could join. I asked who it was and she said Jerry T. (Ed. Note: names have been changed). As you can imagine, I wasn’t about to say no to a legend like him tagging along. I put him on the same level as the likes of Helen Keplinger and Andy Erickson.

Well, ten minutes later he pulled up in an old Outback with a bright-red Colnago C64 on his rack and we took off up the Silverado Trail, zooming along in the fresh early A.M. air, past oak and magnolia trees and dew-covered vineyards.

30 miles in, and some 20 degrees hotter, climbing a 9.5% grade hill, we were a haggard bunch, grunting, wheezing, and sweating—save for Jerry. He turned around in his seat, hardly even winded, and asked if we wanted to see a vineyard nearby that he’d taken a liking to. My red-faced friends waved him off and said they were heading home. My journalistic curiosity piqued, I reached for my water bottle and said I was game.

Another twenty or so miles of back-breaking hills, and Jerry pulled over, unbuckled his helmet, and pointed at the slopes to our right. We were looking at a vineyard, he explained, that supplied Cabernet Sauvignon grapes to some of the top cult brands in Napa. Well above the fogline, the high-elevation site sees refreshing gusts of cool wind and abundant sunlight, while the roots below struggle to find purchase in volcanic rock and shale. The plot often produces less than a ton per acre, he told me, and in hot, low-yield vintages like 2016, the fruit is stunningly exquisite.

“Want to try what I’ve been working on from it?” he said, noting that his house wasn’t far. I winced at his idea of “not far” but at that point, I just had to try the wine. You know my weakness for mountain Napa Cabernet, especially from a talent of his caliber. On his back porch, overlooking a verdant sweep of woods and mountains and snacking on a plate of beef jerky and aged gouda, I rested my aching legs and stuck my nose in the glass. Graphite and plum touched with vanilla and sweet spice on the nose, and purple fruit and licorice on the palate was framed by chocolate-y tannins. Even if you weren’t a fan of classic Napa Cabs, this was impossible not to like.

Turns out one of the brands he consulted for bought the fruit for a private label, but decided it didn’t fit with their marketing plan. So he’d been toying around with it, looking to get that perfect balance between the firm structure of mountain fruit and the dense, almost savory concentration of the 2016 vintage. “Know anyone who might be interested?” he asked.

Glad it was you guys.

Best,

T.

This was an incredibly limited-run production, and T.’s descriptions are accurate—this is a top-notch Napa Cab that will sell out in no time. Today, we’re thrilled to be the first retailer to ever share it. Don’t wait on securing your share of Editorial, because we can’t guarantee it will ever be back.