2017 DuMOL Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley 750 ml

We’d been massive fans of DuMOL’s stellar cool-climate Sonoma County wines for years, so Wine Spectator’s claim that the winery also “mastered” Cabernet Sauvignon left us intrigued. 

And our first-ever sip left us starstruck. 

The 2017 DuMOL Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley is just the winery’s fourth vintage of Cabernet, and they’re already in the dwelling in 97+ point Napa Valley big leagues, an echelon primarily populated by multi-hundred-dollar cellar showpieces. Yet DuMOL’s 97-point Cabernet is not just a Wine Enthusiast Cellar Selection, but the magazine’s top-rated Cabernet Sauvignon of the vintage.

This “complex, ultimately beguiling” Cabernet grabs hold of you with the very first swirl, and doesn’t let go until the last long-lingering sip. With a deep purple core and high-toned red cherry and black plum on the nose, it transitions to blackberry and creamy cassis on the silky palate, with streaks of savory herbs, cedar, and tobacco all riding on a beautifully well-integrated tannic structure.  

Last year, Robert Parker’s Wine Advocate singled out DuMOL as a winery whose “prices for the quality will blow you away,” and as Napa Valley’s multi-hundred-dollar 2017 Cabernets continue to be released and rated, this 97-pointer from DuMOL will just look better and better. Today you can claim it on Wine Access for $100, 16% off the list price. It’s a Cabernet that shows that, on both sides of the Mayacamas, no winery’s quality tops DuMOL’s. 

This might be one of the best-kept Cabernet secrets in Napa Valley, since it comes from a stalwart Sonoma County producer that’s made major waves with their cooler-climate varieties. But the hints are there: In addition to the Chardonnay and Pinot Noir pioneers on DuMOL winemaker-partner Andy Smith’s résumé, he worked under Cabernet legend Paul Hobbs, and spent 15 years creating the range of Cabernet expressions at Napa Valley’s iconic Larkmead. Needless to say, Smith has a perfect sense of Napa Valley’s finest terroirs. 

In the seamless 2017, Smith secured deep fruit richness from the up-valley True Dog Knoll and Roach Vineyards in Oakville and St. Helena. The beautiful, broad texture and density comes from the prestigious Meteor Vineyard in cooler Coombsville, and the Ballard Vineyard on Spring Mountain adds a touch of hillside structure. The wine is aged for 20 months in 55% new French oak, and the result is a masterful 97-point Napa Cabernet that will be tough to top—on either side of the Mayacamas.