🏷️ Lot Overview
Region: Stags Leap District (Napa Valley)
Vintage: 2023
Blend: 91% Cabernet Sauvignon, 6% Petit Verdot, 3% Cabernet Franc
ChatGPT Original Source Guess: Shafer Vineyards (One Point Five program most likely; alternate: Cliff Lede)
Wine Berserkers Guess: Cliff Lede Rythm Cabernet
Alcohol: 14.6%
Oak Aging: ~80% new French oak
Cam Price: $16.58 ($199/case)
Retail Estimate: $100+
Drink Window: 2026–2040
🍷 Cameron’s Release Notes
Dear Friends,
I’ve had my eye out for a great Stags Leap District Cabernet all year and kissed a lot of frogs. But the fact is, Stags Leap is the tiniest appellation in Napa Valley and very little juice squirts out of there, save for the odd lot of poorly-attended-to wine.
And then at the last minute, BOOM! As folks stared into harvest and Fall sales projections, I was able to secure a good-sized lot of world-class, first run Stags Leap District Cabernet Sauvignon!
As I mentioned, this is a good sized Lot so, while I would normally offer this at $299 per case delivered, today we are going to chip off a 200 cases at, drum roll please…
… $199 PER CASE DELIVERED!
First come, first serve! We just bottled the wine today and it’s gorgeous. Rock and roll baby!
Website / Tasting Notes
Sourced from an estate vineyard and winery in the northern reaches of the Stags Leap appellation just off the Silverado Trail, this is no-expense-spared production including a “state-of-the-art” winery, ~80% new French oak, and a well over $100/bottle price point (tight NDA prevents naming). Cam is fairly confident this is their final bottling blend.
Deep ruby, almost opaque in the glass with a hint of purple at the rim. Gorgeous bouquet explodes with juicy blackberry, black cherry, graphite, cedar, and a kiss of chocolate/espresso. Elegant yet powerful, this is classic iron-fist-in-velvet-glove Stags Leap Cab with a fleshy, ripe mid-palate structure supporting sumptuous black and red fruits that unfurl in waves over graphite- and mineral-laced tannins, with a dusting of cocoa powder on the finish.
Beautifully integrated, saturated, and balanced — this is archetypal Stags Leap Cabernet Sauvignon.
Composition:
- 99% Stags Leap District, 1% Oakville District
- 91% Cabernet Sauvignon, 6% Petit Verdot, 3% Cabernet Franc
- 14.6% alc.
- ~200 cases available
- Bottled August 28, 2025
🧠ChatGPT says:
🔍 Source Guess: Shafer Vineyards (most likely, One Point Five program); possible alternate: Cliff Lede
🧾 Rationale
- Location Clue: Cam specifies “northern reaches of Stags Leap just off Silverado Trail.” Shafer’s estate vineyards and state-of-the-art winery sit directly in that geography, making them the prime candidate.
- Winemaking Style: Descriptors like “iron fist in a velvet glove,” “graphite, cedar, chocolate,” and finely knit tannins are hallmarks of Shafer’s One Point Five Cabernet program. This is textbook Shafer language.
- Oak Regimen: ~80% new French oak is consistent with Shafer’s oak program.
- Retail Tier: “Well over $100/bottle” matches Shafer’s $110+ release price for One Point Five. Cliff Lede’s Stags Leap Cab bottlings also hover around $100–$125, making them a secondary but less likely option.
- Final Blend Comment: Cam’s note that this is “likely their final bottling blend” strongly suggests finished estate-tier wine, not blending leftovers. That fits a disciplined producer like Shafer more than a négociant.
- Case Size: 200 cases matches a small excess carve-out from an estate program like One Point Five.
🤔 Alternative Considerations
- Cliff Lede Vineyards: Their Stags Leap program (“Poetry,” “Claret,” etc.) sometimes fits the description — but their style trends toward plusher, more modern Cab, less tightly classical than Shafer.
- Stag’s Leap Wine Cellars (SLWC): A famous neighbor, but their bottlings (Fay, SLV, Artemis) are much larger in scale and unlikely to appear under NDA this way.
⏳ Drink Window
Best Enjoyed: 2026–2035 for peak vibrancy and balance
Early Approach: Will need at least 12–18 months post-bottling for tannins to integrate (late 2026 earliest)
Cellar Potential: Can easily run to 2040 given structure, oak, and pedigree
🧑‍🤝‍🧑🍷 Wine Berserkers Guess: Cliff Lede Rhythm Cabernet