2021 Morande Cabernet Sauvignon La Capilla El Cabernet de Ranquil Valle del Itata Chile 750 ml

Real quick: If we were to pitch you an extremely rare 98-point Cabernet from Napa Valley, what price would you hope to see? $100? $200? Anyone who knows Napa Cab knows you’d be blessed to find a 98-pointer for those prices—after all, 2021 98-pointers Schrader, Paul Hobbs, and Bond are going for $500 to $850+. 

And that is what makes the 2021 Morande Cabernet Sauvignon La Capilla El Cabernet de Ranquil such a remarkable buy. Crafted from a minuscule (just 1.97 hectares) block of 130-year-old Cabernet vines, it’s an absolutely stunning Cabernet that—like the marquee names above—earned 98 points from James Suckling. 

Pablo Morandé is one of the founding fathers of Chile's Casablanca Valley—among the first to recognize the region's immense potential for cool-climate varieties. But for the Cabernet La Capilla, Morandé looked elsewhere, to a historic parcel in the Ranquil area of the Secano Costero, deep in Chile's Itata Valley.

The Itata Valley has grown grapes since the 16th century. By the 1980s, the area had shifted toward quantity over quality—but a handful of prized parcels survived intact. Among them is the historic La Capilla Vineyard, set within an estate of over 80 hectares, of which only 17 are planted to vines. La Capilla itself—the only Cabernet block on the property—is just 1.97 hectares. The vines, now 130 years old, grow on their own roots and are still plowed by horse, supported by guiding wires but otherwise left largely to their own devices.

Aged 16 months in French oak and another two years in bottle, the 2021 is deep garnet with a ruby rim. The nose delivers blackcurrant, wild blackberry, and fresh plum, accented by dried herbs, graphite, and a touch of cigar box. On the palate, it's powerful yet graceful—spiced dark fruit framed by savory green olive, pine, and cocoa, all lifted by vibrant acidity and sleek minerality.

Just 2,000 bottles of this wine exist in the world. It rarely reaches the United States, and we are proud to have secured an allocation for our members.