2023 Carter Cellars The Three Kings Beckstoffer To Kalon Oakville Napa Valley 750 ml

Russell Bevan and Mark Carter are chasing perfection from Beckstoffer To Kalon, and the 2023 Three Kings is the fullest expression of what that pursuit looks like. It is a wine of uncommon depth and polish—the kind of Cabernet Sauvignon that makes you understand, in a single sip, why certain vineyards acquire the reputations they do.

To Kalon's story begins in 1868, when Hamilton Crabb planted vines on the Oakville benchland and named his estate after the Greek phrase for "the highest beauty." For a century and a half, the vineyard has produced some of the most consequential Cabernet Sauvignon on earth. Carter Cellars has been sourcing fruit from the Beckstoffer-owned portion of the vineyard since 2000, and the Three Kings draws from a specific block at the back—Clone 7, producing fruit of singular concentration and finesse.

The 2023 growing season was one for the history books. After years of drought, Napa received one of its wettest winters on record, with more than 50 inches of rain in parts of the Valley against a historical average of around 31. Vines entered the season deeply refreshed, and what followed was a long, cool, remarkably even-tempered summer. Morning fog kept temperatures in check, heat spikes were rare, and growers who exercised patience were rewarded with fruit of extraordinary ripeness and balance. Many in the industry are already placing 2023 among the greatest Napa vintages in a generation.

In the cellar, the wine is in the hands of Russell Bevan, one of the most decorated winemakers California has produced. Bevan has earned more perfect scores than virtually anyone working in Napa today—a record built not on a single great vineyard or a single charmed year, but sustained across decades and dozens of wines. His imprint on the Three Kings is already unmistakable.

In the glass, this is Cabernet Sauvignon at its most complete: inky and opulent, with waves of dark fruit, graphite, and violets giving way to a palate of polished concentration and a finish that lingers long after the glass is empty.