🏷️ Lot Overview
Region: Oakville District (Napa Valley)
Vintage: 2024
Blend: 100% Petite Sirah
ChatGPT Original Source Guess: Undisclosed ultra-premium Oakville Cabernet producer (possible hidden lot from a top estate like Harlan, Screaming Eagle, or Rudd)
Wine Berserkers Guess:
Alcohol: 14.5%
Oak Aging: 100% new French oak
Cam Price: $10.75 ($129/case)
Retail Estimate: $300+ if bottled under the estate’s label
Drink Window: 2026–2035
🍷 Cameron’s Release Notes
Well, this one’s a mystery, folks.
When this sample came across my desk, the first thought that popped into my head was, “What in the world are they doing with this?”
An Oakville Petite Sirah produced by one of Napa Valley’s most pedigreed Cabernet Sauvignon houses isn’t that strange, but the fact that they have no program into which to deploy it leaves me scratching my head. I’ve scoured the internet and found nothing—it’s not listed anywhere under their label, nor as a blending component.
Beyond confirming 100% new French oak and admitting they had “over $80/gallon” invested, the head of winemaking offered no explanation—just sent over an NDA and said, “Please sign this.”
So yes, it’s a mystery—but an utterly beguiling one. Structurally and aromatically, this Petite Sirah could easily pass for a Cabernet Sauvignon—dense, elegant, polished, and powerful. Perhaps it was meant as a secret blender?
Whatever its origin, it’s yours today for $129/case DELIVERED, which is absurd given the pedigree and polish. The estate’s Cabernets start in the mid-triple digits per bottle, but they simply wanted this wine out of the winery.
It’s one of the most elegant, finessed Petite Sirahs Cam has ever bottled—certain to go down as a legendary CAM X lot.
Back up the truck? Hell yeah.
~250 cases produced.
Tasting Notes
Inky and nearly opaque in the glass with a vibrant purple rim. Blueberry pie and cherry kirsch swirl with layers of toasty French oak, pink florals, and river gravel minerality. With air, the bouquet expands into blackcurrant, blackberry compote, and graham cracker.
Supple on entry yet structurally commanding—ample fruit seamlessly integrated with polished tannins and a majestic, 90-second finish. The oak, fruit, and tannin interplay here is flawless—this is easily one of the most precisely made Petite Sirahs ever bottled under CAM X.
Still a baby, but already thrilling. Cam plans to keep it in barrel through the end of 2024 and bottle in January 2025.
100% Petite Sirah
100% Oakville District
14.5% alc.
~250 cases available
🧠ChatGPT says
🔍 Source Guess: Unknown Oakville Estate; likely a top-tier Cabernet Sauvignon producer with luxury-tier facilities and deep pockets (possible Harlan, Rudd, or Bond).
🎯 Rationale
- Pedigree clues: “Mid-triple digits per bottle” and “no-expense-spared” describe only a handful of Oakville estates—Harlan Estate, Rudd Estate, Bond, Screaming Eagle, or Dalla Valle.
- Unlisted varietal: None of these producers publicly make a Petite Sirah. This supports Cam’s suspicion that it may have been a test lot or blending experiment that never made it to release.
- Production notes: $80/gallon production cost + 100% new French oak + NDA requirement = elite-level winemaking.
- Style: Described as “Cab-like” in structure and polish—consistent with the precision and balance expected from Napa’s most exclusive estates.
While we can’t confirm which one, the fingerprints of an ultra-luxury Oakville Cabernet producer are all over this mysterious Petite Sirah.
⏳ Drink Window
Early Enjoyment:
While structured for the long haul, the warmth of the 2024 vintage will make this approachable by late 2026.
Peak Drinking:
2027–2032, when the power, polish, and fruit integration hit their stride.
Hold Potential:
Graceful aging through 2035, developing notes of mocha, blueberry liqueur, and graphite.
My Call:
⏳ Drink window (post-bottle shock): 2026–2035 (peak 2027–2032)