Napa Valley Cabernet: Best Stags Leap District 2018 wines

One of the smallest AVAs in Napa, with gentle slopes creating unique exposures for many vineyards.

The region receives a direct funnel of marine layer from San Pablo Bay, with afternoon ocean breezes helping tame midday temperatures.

Scroll down for the top-scoring Stags Leap District 2018 wines

It borders the Yountville AVA on three sides, with the fittingly-named Stags Leap Palisades forming its eastern border, the Napa River to its west and lowlands to the south.

Soils vary greatly here, with volcanic deposits from the Vaca Range in the eastern section and sedimentary soils against the Napa River on the west.

Winemaker from Chimney Rock Elizabeth Vianna described the year through a comparison with Miles Davis’ album The Birth of the Cool. ‘It was so refreshing to have a cool vintage. My nickname for it is ‘The Rebirth of the Cool.’

Quick links

Individual AVA analysis and top-scoring wines coming soon:

Calistoga, Coombsville, Howell Mountain, Mount Veeder, Oakville, Rutherford, St Helena

Harvests like 2018 have the added bonus of easing up on the often-hectic bustle of picking.

Vianna explains: ‘Our estate is about 100 acres. In a more compressed vintage, I may pick all our Cabernet in about 8 to 10 days. That’s really harried and crazy.

‘In 2018, I had a span of 18 days to pick. We had gotten used to harvesting everything in September and finishing by early October. In 2018, we finished 1 November. That’s like the old-fashioned vintages we used to work 10 to 15 years ago.’

Napa Valley Cabernet: Full 2018 vintage report

The best examples are elegant, graceful Cabernets with vibrant, clean energy, but producers cater to an array of consumer tastes.

The single-vineyard wines from Chimney Rock are particularly definitive.

Shafer produces more modern iterations, and Realm Cellars takes this profile to bonafide ‘cult’ status.

See the top-scoring Stags Leap District 2018 wines

See also

Decanter Premium Collector’s Guide: Napa Valley 

Producer profile: Stag’s Leap Wine Cellars

California Cabernet 2016: Panel tasting results