2021 The Mascot Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley 750 ml

Well over a decade ago, Will Harlan scored a few barrels of Cabernet from the younger vines at his family’s incomparable estates. He blended a wine to share with his friends, packaging some of the most precious Cabernet in Napa Valley in nondescript bottles. 

Finally, in 2008, Will’s wine eked its way outside his inner circle, and The Mascot soon took its place as one of the greats. It is the only wine in the world that can claim to be made by the teams behind three of Napa Valley’s most legendary Cabernets—BOND, Harlan Estate, and Promontory—and that pedigree shows in every sip of the 2021, which hails from one of the finest Napa Valley vintages this century.

The Mascot is composed of grapes from the BOND, Harlan, and Promontory vineyards, and there’s hardly room to describe these three sites in their glorious detail. First, of course, is Harlan Estate, located in the hillsides of western Oakville. The vines sit on rocky slopes—from about a foot to just a few inches of soil—atop a unique geologic mix of fractured bedrock and ancient sandstone. It’s a terroir whose unparalleled quality can’t be denied, although it might never be fully understood. 

BOND is made from five small vineyard sites: the rocky Melbury Vineyard, overlooking Lake Hennessey; Quella, in the volcanic ash of eastern Napa Valley; St. Eden, situated on the Oakville Crossroad, in red, rocky soils that tumbled a million years ago from Pritchard Hill; Vecina, with its 11 terraced acres in the Oakville foothills; and Pluribus, perched 1,000 feet high on Spring Mountain. At BOND, these terroirs are showcased separately. In The Mascot, the five stellar sites are woven together. 

Finally, Promontory is the endeavor taken on by the second generation of the family and winegrowing team, led by Will Harlan. An untamed piece of land forgotten in time and hidden within the heart of Napa Valley, Promontory comprises volcanic, sedimentary, and metamorphic soils spread over 500 feet of elevation. 

A sip of Cabernet expressing any of these sites could rightly be described as the wine experience of a lifetime, and The Mascot 2021 is a magical Cabernet that shows off a top vintage and crack winemaking skills.