Review: 2019 Stags’ Leap Winery Cabernet Sauvignon Limited Edition Reserve Napa Valley
Stags’ Leap produces a number of Cabernet Sauvignons that range from very good to outstanding, so it’s a pleasure today to have a chance to try their 2019 Limited Edition Reserve, which draws grapes from a number of their Napa Valley vineyards. This year’s bottling is 88% Cabernet Sauvignon, 7% Malbec, 3% Petit Verdot, and 2% Cabernet Franc.
You will want to decant this wine or give it a bit of time to breathe. At first pour, it is tight and a bit one-dimensional, but with some air it opens up nicely. The wine pours inky purple in the glass. The nose is subtler than the palate, but both offer juicy, well-integrated notes of plum, cassis, blackberry, and tea leaf. The wine has a silky mouthfeel, and its high acidity promises it will pair well with steak or even a pork ragu. The finish is medium to long, slightly drying, and introduces a light note of milk chocolate. Altogether, I might have liked a bit more complexity at this price point, but this is a good example of what Stags’ Leap does so well. This might be a good bottle to hold on to; another two years in the bottle should bring added depth.
A- / $100 / stagsleap.com
2019 Stags' Leap Winery Cabernet Sauvignon Limited Edition Reserve Napa Valley
$100
