2019 Adversity Cellars Cabernet Sauvignon Melanson Vineyard Napa Valley 750 ml

“I’ve got something new I want to put in front of you.” 

We’d rearrange our schedule any day to taste just one of our friend and 100-point winemaker Russell Bevan’s Cabernets—so when we got that text from Russell himself, we dropped everything and headed to his spacious cellar. 

Today, our decade-long relationship with Russell results in a true never-again opportunity: the chance to get in on the inaugural Melanson Cabernet Sauvignon from his new label, Adversity Cellars. This single-vineyard release boasts the tension, complexity, and concentration that can only come from grapes grown in inhospitable, unforgiving, and adverse conditions, and it's as deeply impressive as anything we’ve ever tasted from Russell.

From a prime Pritchard Hill site, you won’t find this Cab from 100pt superstar Russel Bevan anywhere. Bevan has “blown away” Robert Parker with his Cabs—and blows the competition out of the water with this. 

Melanson Vineyard, located at the very top of the prestigious Pritchard Hill east of Oakville, is the source of some of Napa’s finest Cabernet. Grown in the coveted site's dappled sunlight and staggering temperature changes, the wine is brimming with crushed huckleberries, which present as soft and sensual. The wine is full-bodied, with rounded edges and graceful tannins, alongside floral tones anchored to luxurious Madagascar vanilla and baking spices from the oak regimen. A wine born of hardship but characterized by gentleness and character, it’s ready to drink now, but will certainly reward the patience of those with the willpower to put it in the cellar.