2021 Simon Family Estate Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley 750 ml

“How do you craft an Oakville Cabernet Sauvignon that competes with Harlan, Futo, Opus One, and Dalla Valle?” 

That question was posed by Decanter’s Jonathan Cristaldi in his review of the 2021 Simon Family Estate Reserve Cabernet. The answer: You cut zero corners in pursuit of perfection. That’s how you make the highest-grossing wine at Premiere Napa Valley, which Simon did in 2024. It’s also how you achieve a flawless wine like this one. 

That commitment starts with top vineyards. This Cabernet comes largely from Vine Hill Ranch—nestled in the foothills of western Oakville near Futo, Harlan Estate, and Promontory—and the rapidly rising Tench Vineyard, which neighbors Screaming Eagle in the appellation’s famed iron-rich eastern hills. A third site, the family’s newly acquired Collinetta Vineyard in Coombsville, provides the wine with a gorgeous third dimension with grapes grown in cool proximity to the San Pablo Bay. 

The man behind the wine is Maayan Koschitzky, Atelier Melka’s Director of Winemaking and author of many (and counting!) 100-pointers. This Cabernet is a handpicked barrel selection, aged in new French oak for 22 months. With gorgeous spice and complexity, it’s showing beautifully now but will evolve in the cellar for decades. 

Winery founders Sam and Nada Simon are both from Armenia, although they met in the US. Sam fled Armenia when he was very young, eventually making it to Detroit (via Iraq). He bought a tanker truck to deliver oil around the metro area, a venture that evolved into Atlas Oil—the enterprise that would eventually enable him to realize the dream of starting a Napa Valley winery. Now he’s making wines that belong among the very best in your collection.