2018 Kukeri Proprietary Red Blend Stags Leap District Napa Valley 750 ml

Kukeri winemaker Petar Kirilov has fashioned the Bordeaux-style blend of our dreams from the rarefied terroir behind Stags Leap District legends like Realm, Kapcsándy, and Shafer.

Imagine sleek Right Bank structure layered with New World sassiness and muscle, and you’ve got the basic idea behind today’s scintillating deal.

Only 290 cases were made of this brand-new bottling: a bold, powerful, Cabernet Franc-led assemblage bursting at the seams with aromas of crushed violets, raspberry, licorice, and graphite. We weren’t going to let this polished, dark beauty get away from us, especially with the massive fan base that Kukeri boasts among Wine Access members. After our last offer from this producer, one five-star review instructed: “Please get more!!”

Wish, granted.

Pete originally planned to sell this small-production blend for $65 per bottle, slicing up the production (all of two barrels) across a select client base. But after we reminded him of members’ ardent devotion to Kukeri wines, we got something closer to a wholesale price...

That’s a scorching deal for a portrait in miniature of Stags Leap, perfectly realized in every detail, down to the 18 months in 30% new French oak. This is Napa’s smallest AVA, home to historic properties that coined this region’s premier reputation around the world. The appellation’s single-vineyard releases regularly rack up 96+ point scores and $100+ prices.

It’s the kind of bottle that Pete does better than almost anyone—his specialty is single-AVA bottlings from Napa’s most prestigious regions: Oakville, Rutherford, Atlas Peak, Howell Mountain. His loyal mailing list is happy to pay up to $105 for the experience of sipping these beautifully crafted, small-lot Cabernets.

So paying less than $40 for a bottle like this is a deal that our members recognize as a buy-on-sight offer. With a conductor’s sense of finely tuned balance, Pete plays the bass tones of Cabernet Franc off the resounding concentration of the Cabernet Sauvignon. Malbec, Merlot, and Petit Verdot serve supporting roles yet are perfectly integrated, each playing their part. From the moment we sampled the blend at a makeshift tasting table, we were in love.

We’d sped over as soon as Pete sent word that he had something brand-new for us to check out. And it’s a good thing we did. When our glance strayed to his appointment list for the day, showing that we were the first of nine meetings, our decision to jump on the new Stags Leap release got even easier. 

Pete’s unique talent is sniffing out overlooked or under-the-radar properties in the hottest districts, allowing him to channel Napa greatness into bottles priced way below the competition. For this one-off release, he picked up grapes from along the rugged, rocky hills on the eastern side of the Stags Leap District, as well as from the gravel-filled riverbed terroir that defines the west.

We didn’t miss our chance to seize an allocation, so don’t miss this one-time chance to claim your share.