2021 Courtney Benham Cabernet Sauvignon Reserve Napa Valley 750 ml

Courtney Benham might be the king of “How did he do that?” grape sourcing.

He produces stunning bottlings from Napa Valley’s top AVAs—all exceptional wines that move with haste from our warehouse to our members’ cellars—and his 2021 Reserve Cabernet is a selection of some of the choicest barrels in the cellar. 

This is a dark-fruited powerhouse packed with blackberries, cassis, and macerated blueberries—all highlighted with rocky soil, bittersweet chocolate, and a hint of bay. The heat of the 2021 vintage, coupled with tiny yields, meant grapes were small and the vines could put enormous energy into ripening them. The result is bottles with “tremendous energy as well as finesse,” according to Vinous, who compared the year to 2013 or ‘14—“but with more aromatic explosiveness and greater inner sweetness.”

Benham, one of California’s savviest operators since the 1980s, is among the few Napa luminaries who can pull off vineyard sourcing like this. Raised on a family farm in Bakersfield, he learned the wine business from his father.

His connections throughout California—forged through his long career producing top-rated wines—means that he secures access to fantastic grapes for reasonable prices. That ability to leverage such industry connections into showstopping values has made his label a sensation among Wine Access members. 

The Courtney Benham brand is a collaboration with Keith Emerson, who earned his 100-point stripes with Vineyard 29. Emerson also crafts big, critically acclaimed mountain wines for Robert Craig, meaning his bottles typically fetch at least $100. Benham and Emerson’s partnership has yielded a string of incredible bargains, and this bottle—with a luxurious, silky texture comparable to wines several times the price–fully displays the rare level of value this winery offers.