2019 Girard Winery Cabernet Sauvignon Calistoga Napa Valley 750 ml

The Tenma Vineyard, in Calistoga’s Jericho Canyon, is a magic terroir for Cabernet Sauvignon. Over 30 years old, it boasts the same rocky alluvial soils as the nearby, legendary Eisele Vineyard ($500+).

Here in this northeast corner of Calistoga, up against the palisades of the Vaca Mountains, diurnal temperature swings are huge—sometimes as great as 50 degrees. This hastens ripening during the day, and the cool nights help the grapes keep acidity and freshness. It’s simply a perfect microclimate for Cabernet Sauvignon. That’s why the old vines in Tenma Vineyard have supplied multiple Premiere Napa Valley Auction wines—the best of the best—over the years.

Girard’s Winemaker Glenn Hugo selected only a handful of barrels for this single-vineyard wine, and used only Rolls Royce-level French oak: Taransaud, Sylvain Grand Réserve, Bel Air Absolue, and Fleur de Quintessence. It’s EXACTLY the caliber you’ll find in every cult winery cave in Napa Valley.

This is a winery-only bottle that is not in wide distribution—you can barely find a single bottle from ANY vintage in the last decade. A lot of diligent back-and-forth got us an allocation, but it’s tiny: less than 200 cases were made in the first place, and we nabbed the last of them. Not even Girard has this wine available.

Line this up blind with Calistoga’s elite like Montelena and Eisele, and it will hold its own: On the nose, this wine reveals an array of aromas, with ripe blackberries, dark cherries, and blackcurrants taking center stage, accompanied by hints of dried herbs, sandalwood, and a touch of vanilla bean. Savor each bottle from your case over the next decade, and marvel at how little you paid.