Red

Pre-Arrival - The wine arrives late November 2025.

#51 on The Wine Spectator's Top 100 Wines Of 2025

92 points Wine Spectator
A rock-solid Cab, offering a steady beam of warmed cassis and cherry reduction notes laced with a loamy accent to keep everything grounded. Dark tobacco and a flash of walnut husk add range through the finish, which hasn’t fully unwound just yet. Best from 2026 through 2036

Winemaker Notes:
"Our prize offering, the ultra premium Claret, sports a label that honors the first Cabernet Sauvignon blended in a Bordeaux style by Gustave Niebaum in 1910. Claret is a term originally coined by the British to describe Cabernet-based wines. This Cabernet Sauvignon, Petit Verdot, Malbec and Cabernet Franc blend is alluring and sophisticated; it is memorably lush with a tapestry of smooth tannins and succulent flavors of wild berries, plum and anise. Borrowing tradition of European wineries, we add gold netting to bottle to signify outstanding quality of wine."

77% Cabernet Sauvignon 19% Petit Verdot 3% Cabernet Franc 1% Merlot. Aged 12 months in French oak.

98+ points Wine Advocate
Deep garnet-purple in color, the 2019 Cabernet Sauvignon Estate needs a lot of swirling and coaxing to unlock notions of blackcurrant pastilles, warm black plums and mulberries, plus hints of black olives, tilled soil, mossy tree bark and violets with emerging baker's chocolate and star anise hints. Full-bodied, rich, concentrated and with impeccable poise, it has beautifully ripe, grainy tannins and just enough freshness, finishing epically long and earthy.

97 points Vinous
The 2019 Cabernet Sauvignon is dazzling. What a wine! Ample and creamy, the 2019 possesses striking resonance to match its elegant, refined personality. A healthy dollop of Franc adds freshness to a core of dark red cherry, red plum, mocha, spice and new leather flavors. There is a level purity here that is just remarkable. This is the first vintage that includes a small portion of wine aged in amphora. I especially admire the aromatic presence and vibrancy in the 2019.

100 points Jeb Dunnuck
The flagship 2018 Cabernet Sauvignon checks in as 89% Cabernet Sauvignon, 6% Cabernet Franc, and 5% Petit Verdot brought up in 40% new French oak. With an essence of Cabernet like character in its darker currants, green tobacco, cedar, graphite, and floral aromas and flavors, this gorgeous wine is full-bodied and has bright yet integrated acidity, polished tannins, and a great, great finish. It’s just gorgeously put together and a magical, flawless wine. It’s going to take a decade to hit maturity but will evolve for 40-50 years in cold cellars. It is as good as it gets in classic, age-worthy Cabernet Sauvignon!(1/2021)

100 points James Suckling
This is incredible on the nose, offering hot stones, blackcurrants, iodine and wet earth. Full-bodied with a tight center palate, then it opens with a tannin structure that is weightless and spreads across the palate. Totally integrated on the palate. This is a magic-carpet wine. Really incredible. One of the reference points for the vintage. Drinkable now and please try a bottle, but it’s one for the cellar. (5/2021)

99 points Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
Very deep garnet-purple colored, the 2018 Dominus slowly emerges from the glass with profound notes of blackcurrant cordial, ripe black plums, boysenberries and Black Forest cake with hints of violets, star anise, cracked black pepper, raspberry leaves and pencil lead, plus a touch of garrigue. Medium to full-bodied, the palate delivers impactful black fruit layers, creating a beguiling sense of richness that is beautifully countered by invigorating freshness and great poise, framed by super ripe, plush tannins and beautiful tension, finishing on a lingering fragrant earth note and, finally, lots of mineral sparks. For all that it is at the moment, one cannot help but feel that this 2018 is holding something back. Give it a good five years in bottle, at least, and then get set for what I suspect will be a mindblowing transformation over the next 30 years+. (LPB) (2/2021)

97 points Vinous
The 2018 Dominus is wild and exotic from the first taste. Lifted aromatics make a strong opening impression. There is something exuberant about the 2018 that is hard to describe. The 2018 is not a huge Dominus, nor is it massively structured, but the intensity of the flavors is remarkable just the same. Dark raspberry, spice, leather and cedar are some of the many notes that open over time. (AG)

99 points Wine Advocate
The 2019 Dominus is blend of 90% Cabernet Sauvignon, 6% Petit Verdot and 4% Cabernet Franc, aged in 40% new French oak. Impressively dark-hued in the glass, it yields scents of cherries and cassis on the nose—or is it black cherries and redcurrants? Subtle notes of mocha, pencil shavings and almost Graves-like earthiness wind through the concentrated, medium to full-bodied palate, giving it a sense of savory gravitas, while the finish is silky and long, leaving a lingering residue of soft tannins and mouthwatering freshness.

98 points James Suckling
Lots of crushed stone, lead pencil and licorice aromas that are extremely aromatic and bright. Black cherries, cloves and purple fruit, too. Full body and a round and ripe center-palate with a juicy interior. It opens at the end with a savory and juicy finish. Layered and beautiful.

Plush and rich-tasting, with finely interwoven flavors of dark cherry, plum tart and blackberry accented by cocoa powder notes.

94 points Wine Spectator
A dynamic blend, combining deep structure with finesse and polish, this features black cherry and cassis flavors laced with toasty spice, red licorice and a hint of dusty herbs as it builds tension toward refined tannins. Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon and Petit Verdot. Drink now through 2030

92 points James Suckling
Ripe blackberries, sweet spices, crushed walnuts, cedar and wet stones. Some iodine, too. Full-bodied, firm and structured with chalky texture to the tannins and juicy acidity. Polished and even. Better after 2025.

"This "crazy value" Napa Cab was sourced from a couple of top "Cult" wineries in the Valley (SHHH...their wines sell for between $75-150/bot!). Deep, rich and plush with classic Napa Cab fruit, it drinks like a wine costing 2-3 times as much! The Hardin Cabernet Sauvignon is a combination of top valley floor and hillside sites, it's a blend of 98 Cabernet Sauvignon, 2 Cabernet Franc aged in French oak (20 new) for about 22 months. A wine that displays the outright richness and power of the vintage. Deep, intense, plum, dark cherry and spice are prevelant right away on the nose and palate. But the signature of the vintage is then on full display with minerality, balancing structure and a vibrant, fresh core that lifts the fruit and carries the wine. A classic Napa Cab that will drink well for many years."~Distributor Notes

99 pts James Suckling
Blackberry and black chocolate with mint, conifer and clove. Sweet tobacco, violets and flowers, too. Some graphite. Cool and complex. Full-bodied with ultra fine, dusty tannins and a wonderful, extremely long finish. Savory and refined. A classic-styled 2018. This needs time, but is so approachable and gorgeous. One of the best Insignias ever. Alive and changing all the time. 40% Stags Leap AVA. 87% cabernet sauvignon, 8% petit verdot, 3% malbec and 2% cabernet franc. Leave this for five or six years, but so wonderful now.

97 pts Wine Advocate
The 2018 Insignia is a blend of 87% Cabernet Sauvignon, 8% Petit Verdot, 3% Malbec and 2% Cabernet Franc. The vineyard sources this year include: 30% Las Rocas (Stags Leap District),18% Yountville (Oak Knoll District), 13% Banca Dorada (Rutherford), 18% Suscol (South Napa Valley), 14% Home Ranch (St. Helena), 12% Las Rocas (Stags Leap District), 7% Barboza (Stags Leap District). It was aged for 24 months in 100% new French oak barrels. Deep garnet-purple colored, it comes storming out of the glass with powerful notes of blackcurrant cordial, stewed black plums and boysenberries, plus hints of cedar chest, graphite, menthol and wet slate with a fragrant waft of clove oil. The medium to full-bodied palate already demonstrates remarkable balance at this youthful stage, featuring a firm backbone of fine-grained tannins and bold freshness to support the tightly wound, crunchy black fruits, finishing long and spicy. 17,000 cases were made.

97 pts Vinous
The 2018 Insignia is a boisterous, explosive wine. Medium in body and gracious, with striking aromatic presence and tons of silkiness, the 2018 is all class. Today it comes across as a more refined version of the 2016, with similar depth, but riper, sweeter tannin and perhaps a touch more finesse as well. I can't wait to taste it from bottle.

Winemaker Notes:
Upon arrival at the winery, the grapes were carefully destemmed and transferred to upright tanks for a two-day cold soak. The wine saw 15 to 20 days of maceration time and was pumped over two to three times daily to build its round, elegant mouthfeel. Each lot was aged and evaluated separately, with the final blend taking place in May 2019. In total, the wine aged for 16 months in a combination of French and American oak barrels (29% new).

Winemaker Notes:
The 2014 Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon has an opaque crimson color with a purplish hue. The alluring nose draws you in with notes of cassis, black cherry, pipe tobacco, salted caramel, cocoa beans, and fresh strawberry. This full-bodied wine enters with a depth of flavor and offers mouth-coating, velvety tannins, and flavors of cream soda and red fruit. Black currant and vanilla notes crescendo through the palate to the lengthy finish. This wine is drinkable upon release, but given proper cellaring conditions can be enjoyed through 2040.

Blend: 78% Cabernet Sauvignon, 11.6% Merlot, 6.7% Cabernet Franc, 2.1% Petit Verdot, 1.6% Malbec

Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon is exuberant and expressive, with a bounty of wild bramble berry fruits alongside lifted floral notes of lavender and violet. There are also warmer spiced notes of Crème brûlée, allspice and black pepper, a nod from the seamless oak integration. On the palate, juicy cassis, black currant and blackberry are supported by hints of delicate red rose, brown butter and bittersweet chocolate, giving this Cabernet a rich depth and complexity. Cocoa-powdery tannins provide a pleasurable mouth coating texture, all enfolding into a lengthy mouthwatering finish. Very approachable and pleasing upon release, this wine is sure to impress and pair well alongside many culinary dishes.

This wine is as black in color as the darkest night! It displays notes of black currants, black cherries, and plums with a hint of vanilla and a waft of pepper. The full-bodied mouthfeel is accompanied with a chewy finish.

The House Cabernet Sauvignon Batch #18 was crafted with minimal interference in both the vineyards and the cellar. Traditional winemaking includes extended skin maceration, aerating pump-overs and nearly 2 years of French Oak aging.