CHATEAU MONTELENA, ESTATE CABERNET SAUVIGNON

NAPA VALLEY, CALIFORNIA 2014

For wine lovers looking for the best that money can buy, we have a unique offering of half bottles from one of the most lauded estates in Napa Valley - Chateau Montelena. Not only is today's feature from an estate that stands head and shoulders above the rest for producing some of the most sensational Napa Cabernets year after year, it's absolutely rare to find half bottles in Napa Valley. A champion for great California Cabernet, Chateau Montelena put Napa on the map in the famous “Judgement of Paris” over 40 years ago, catapulting them into icon status. For over four decades, they have consistently produced some of the most attractive, world-class Napa Cabernet Sauvignon and as demonstrated by their 2014 Estate Cabernet Sauvignon, proprietor Bo Barrett and Winemaker Matt Crafton continue to up their game. Though it may be easy for people to pass over historic names and always be on the lookout for the next rising star, there’s no denying that Chateau Montelena’s Estate Cabernet Sauvignons are “equivalent to buying blue chip stock. They get better and better with age” (Robert Parker, Wine Advocate).

With an unprecedented level of stunning vintages, it would be easy to take their iconic status for granted, but the wines persuasively attest to their hunger to improve and evolve. In a recent interview with Montelena winemaker, Matt Crafton states “we’re real. There’s no oil money here. Every dollar comes from someone pulling a cork, so we have to think about making a delicious bottle.” For example, the winery is currently undergoing the largest replanting in the winery’s history including everything from clone selection, rootstock, planting density and row orientation. Continually exploring and searching for ways to do it better, they continue to produce brilliantly executed wines that develop beautifully in bottle for decades and today’s 2014 Chateau Montelena is the perfect example. “A total knock-out, the 2014 Cabernet Sauvignon Estate captures all the potential of this great site. Powerful, voluptuous and structured, yet very much within the context of classicism that has defined these wines for several decades” (Antonio Galloni, Vinous). As Chateau Montelena’s Estate Cabernet has a well-established ability to age for more than a quarter of a century, we’re thrilled to have the opportunity to offer you their 2014 in half bottle. Having tasted it recently, I’m happy to report that it offers power, concentration and elegance, and will drink beautifully over the next 2 decades. Furthermore, with the wine in half bottle, we have the chance to see this wine hit its peak in a shorter time frame. At $15 off by the bottle, this is an opportunity to stock up on the best that money can buy.